Princess Tutu: the Diamond in the Rough
by paladin313
Summary: Continuation of the anime: The town is free. Everyone has gone back to what they should be. All seem content enough, until Fakir begins to alter a story that allows Drosselmyer to attempt revenge, and now our heroes must act before all is lost.
1. Chapter 1

Princess Tutu: The Diamond in the Rough

Prologue

Drosselmyer sat anxiously as he watched the affairs around Goldkronesburg, that had been so abruptly wrenched from his control not months before. A direct descendant of his thwarted his attempt to exact great tragedy and revenge against a world he felt did not recognize his genius by the use of a character of his own "creation" and a young duck not long out of her fledgling feathers. He had called her into help complete the story, solely because of her deep desire to aid the prince in regaining his smile, and because he assumed that a little duck could do nothing to prevent the tragedy, (once the ability to help had been taken from her.) He had not expected the duck to actually _become_ Tutu, though still trapped in a duck's body. Of course, if Fakir had not stuck in his nose where it did not belong, (and had not discovered the power he possessed,) and defied the fate he had slated for Fakir, this would not have happened. Instead, he cast off the role assigned to him, became his true self, and empowered the duck to allow the prince to kill the Raven and rescue his love. Since that time, the prince had claimed the vacant crown of the principality in which the town resided, and betrothed himself to Rue. He also, (much to the curiosity of the principality,) outlawed duck hunting at any time. Of course, Drosselmyer knew why, and it angered him. It would have served her right to be blasted for messing everything up! What was worse was Fakir was now aiding the Bookmen in erasing all the mischief he had caused in his stories while he was alive. They were giving Fakir the original manuscripts that he had written, some with the endings ripped out, and having him write new endings for the stories. By doing so, the stories in which he lived were in jeopardy. Already, there had been four stories that he had rewritten, and thus he wrenched control of them from Drosselmyer, thus, causing them to vanish form his realm. If the boy rewrote his entire body of works, he knew he would fade into oblivion. This, he had to stop—but how?

It was then he saw Fakir emerge from the shop with one of his greatest tragedies: "Princess Adelheid and the Five Warlocks." His writing of that story actually caused the vacancy of the throne—one that had not been filled for centuries until Siegfried came along and filled it for a much grateful people. It was also his last complete book before he was killed in the midst of "The Prince and the Raven." He had already eliminated Princess Adelheid, and now sought to entrap her teenage son in his next story. IF he could eliminate him, he could write a tale that would give him the crown, and then, essentially make himself a god, playing with lives as if they were his toys and playthings. Though he had entrapped Siegfried, he was killed before he could finish the tale. However, he had enough foresight to install the writing machine in the clock tower in case something happened. If he did die, then the sotry could be locked into place until such a time he could cause it to finish. He did not forsee, however, the now transformed prince being able to reenter the real world, the Raven in hot pursuit, many centuries later. He figured that, since the sotry had not been completed, the bridge between story and reality had been left open as to where they could escape. The shattering of his heart did curtail things a bit, but he knew that he, through the machine, could resolve that at the right time. Yet, now, it looked like Fakir was now trying to change even that! However, he noticed that the end of this one _had not_ been removed. He thought this odd, and then rememvered how he ended the book. Princess Adelheid had entrapped the warlocks, (who, in reality, were five practicioners of the black arts, who also were murderers,) in a large diamond in the rough, but also caused it that she would be trapped as well. Now, the six spirits of them are locked in there, buried somewhere in Goldkronesburg, eternally combating one another. Thus, the tale did end a bit open to interpretation. Could it be that he sought to continue the tale? If that were the case, maybe he could exact his revenge. He had to await the right moment…

Chapter I

_Music: Vivaldi—the Four Seasons; Spring and Summer_

It was a beautiful late summer day, and the duck sat on the dock, contently napping in the warm sunlight. She awaited the return of her guardian, in hopes of enjoying another great afternoon of fishing, and reading what he had written. She was so happy to know that he was attempting to right all the wrongs of his ancestors, and she loved the way he always did things. He had expressed to her that he feared a "butterfly effect" if he altered too much, considering that these stories typically affected actually people of the past. Therefore, he had to be careful that the past was not altered to the point where it would radically change his time. He had to write logically, insuring a happy outcome, and yet, not alter history to the point where he just might write himself, and his friends, right out of existence. This was just one reason why she loved his caring heart so much.

However, things were soon to change, because he was soon to return to school. Because of all the changes that had taken place, none of them—he, Rue, nor Siegfried—could finish the previous year. Thus, they all pledged to go back and finish together. This meant long days without Fakir, and she just did not know what she would do with herself while he was gone. He always sought to have her by his side, and now, she knew he would be lonely. Yet, she wondered what she would do without him around. She did not mind the arrangement, and was quite content, and yet, something felt amiss. Ever since the machine had been destroyed, she was regaining, (and now had fully regained,) her memories of being hatched and brooded, and always having been a duck. However, Drosselmyer was right: she may have returned to being a duck, but she would never be the same after her time as a human, and further, her time as Princess Tutu. She retained human intelligence, rationale, along with human emotions and desires. Thanks to ballet, she could communicate through dance, as well as communicate through writing. Her writing was not the greatest, considering the awkward way she had to hold the pen in her wing, (which she learned how to use more like a hand because of her time as a human,) and her beak in order to write. However, she was able to communicate.

She also kept in practice with the dance, and she would have been an intermediate dancer by this point. The reason why she had not excelled before was that she lacked self-confidence and self-esteem, as well as she being distracted by her mission. With that done, it was no longer a distraction, and now, she could put her full effort into the dance. Fakir helped as well, providing her with that confidence and esteem she had aforetimes lacked. In fact, this care hit home with her. It was not just that Fakir took care of her—he doted over her. He lavished love on her to where, if people knew just how much, they might lock him away as crazy! Yet, because of this, he gave her strength, self-esteem, and the ability to love herself. She was a duck, had always been a duck, and there was nothing wrong with that. Being human had only been a means to an end, and she knew that she did her greatest heroic work as a duck. She had stopped physically being Tutu, but the spirit of Tutu still lived in her, and because of that, being a duck was not a bad thing at all. However, something was wrong.

She always expressed her gratitude to Fakir for all that he did, and she knew he understood and accepted these thanks. Yet, something was missing, and she could not put her primary feather on just what. She wanted to be able to shoe more gratitude, but did not know how. She was pondering this when she drifted off. In her dream, she saw herself, not _as_ a duck, but as Duck. She also saw herself dancing with either Fakir in a pas de deux, or as a pas de quatre with Rue and Siegfried. This always got her scratching her head. Though she had no problem with being a duck, she also had come to learn that dreams are actually the business of the heart and mind—a byproduct of the brain's processing data received in that day. Therefore, if being a duck was no problem, why did she dream like this? What was going on in her subconscious? This time, it was the four of them, and then suddenly, she heard the quacking of other ducks, and they slowly but surely were being surrounded by ducks—_a lot of ducks_! It shocked her awake, and it was then she realized why this was happening. A rather large flock of ducks had landed in the lake, and by the looks of it, they were resting from a long flight. Then, one of the drakes piped up, and said, "Hey, kid, looks like you beat us here! What squadron are you from?"

"Squa…squadron? What do you mean?" speaking all confused.

A duck then swam up and said, "She's not with us, honey, she's one of the locals. Sorry to confuse you sweetie. You look like you just got your adult feathers, yes?"

She looked a little embarrassed, and said, "Yes."

"Well, it's nothing to be ashamed of, dear," said the duck in the water, "You look so pretty so fresh in them. You're going to knock some drake off his feet one day!"

She turned her head a bit coquettishly, and stirred her foot on the dock. The duck in the water continued, "So, this will be your first migration?"

"Migration?" she asked, "Oh, it is that time, isn't it? I hadn't thought about it."

"Well, I'm not surprised," she continued, "Your wings and squadrons usually leave some point next month."

"You're welcome to come with us," said the drake, "We're heading for the Red Sea area: a great wintering spot!"

"I don't know if I can do that," she said, "I have certain things that…"

As if on cue, Fakir was coming to the pier. The ducks in the water froze, and the drake mumbled very carefully, "Don't look now, but there's a large human coming right behind you!"

"Does he have long, black hair tied in the back?" she asked.

"Yes," he said, "and he looks mean!"

"Oh!" she laughed, "That's just Fakir! He's my friend!"

As she said this, he scooped her up, and said, "Hi! I missed you," and they embraced. She then said, "See? He's all cool!"

All the other ducks then looked at her funny. She was actually letting him hold her, and she was not fighting. Then the drake said, "But…aren't humans…"

"Its okay," she answered, "In fact, all the people around here are nice. The ruler of this principality outlawed all duck hunting, so you are all safe here!"

"Really!" he said, all pleased and surprised, and then turned to the others, and shouted, "Hey! Spread the word! It's safe to stay here tonight! Tell everyone its time for a little R & R!"

Of course, to Fakir, all he heard was quacking and duck chatter, but he knew they were talking about something. "What are you guys on aobut?" he asked. She hopped down, and began to dance, giving indications of flight, and then pointed in a southerly direction. Fakir caught the gist, and said, "Oh, so they're migrating, yes?"

She nodded, and then gave indications that they wanted her to go with them. "Did you accept the offer?" he asked.

She then took the position of refusal. "Well," he said, "I cannot stop you, if that's what you want. Besides, it might be good. I'll be in school most of the time. I'll be staying here, but I won't be around as much. I know you'll be back in the spring."

She again took the position of refusal, and this time, vigorously shook her head back and forth as she quacked disapproval. She then, to get her point across, ran up and embraced his leg. He scooped her up and said, "Okay, okay: I get the point!"

He then sat down and lounged as he set out his hook, and she nestled down into his belly. He then produced the manuscript and said, "Well, here's an interesting one. This is a story that was finished, but could be continued. The main reason why they asked me to do this is to see if I could at least free the heroine and give her some peace. Let's take a look."

Whenever Fakir received a new manuscript, he always read it through to insure that he understood the plot, and so that he could get into the character's heads. He just did not write what he wanted, because he did not want to play with people's lives like that, or cause something catastrophic in his time by changing the past too severely. He always tried to shape the character's decisions in a way that would be logical for the situation given, the way that person most likely would have chosen. If, however, the demise of the character was needed for story continuity, (and if that character living would have changed the past and altered his time severely,) he always insured that it was for a noble cause, and that the character died a hero. He always had her read with him, because her suggestions were always welcome, and she oft had good ideas. However, to anyone passing by and observing, it must have seemed a curious sight. Here was this man with a duck on his belly, and _both_ of them seemingly reading intensely the story before them. It must have seemed even more odd when it seemed that, from time to time, when he prepared to turn a page, she would reach up a wing, stop him for a few seconds as she scanned the page, and then allowed him to proceed. After awhile, the other ducks began to realize that Fakir was not a threat after all, and began to wax bold, even perching on the pier. The drake that had spoken earlier hopped out of the water and waddled up. "What are you doing?" he asked her.

"Reading," she said, not even looking up.

"What's 'reading'?" he asked.

"All these marks represent words," she said, "and if you know what each one means, you can follow them, and they tell a story."

"Weird," he said, and prepared to hop up and take a look. Fakir, who had stopped reading when he heard all the quacking, saw what the drake was getting ready to do, and said, "Don't even think about it: you're soaking wet!"

He looked at her, and grumbled, "Humph! He's quite the grouch, isn't he? How do you put up with him?"

At that moment, a limousine with royal markings pulled up. The chauffeur quickly exited the vehicle, rushed to the rearmost driver's side door, and opened it. Out stepped Prince Siegfried, in a fine Armani suit, and highly polished cordovan wing tip shoes. He deftly turned and extended his hand to his betrothed. Rue, though now called "Princess," she was still, in truth, considered the princess consort until they were properly wed. She was wearing a matching lady's suit, with a fine skirt and a frilly ascot tie and a fine broach. The two, and the drake on the dock turned to see this, and the two smiled, while the drake, (still not sure how much to trust humans around these parts,) figured that the water was the best place to be at that moment. The two arose and approached the royal pair, and then they all embraced. "Your highness," said Fakir, "to what do I owe this pleasure?"

Siegfried laughed, and said, "Please, you do not have to be so formal when it is just us. Siegfried will do fine!"

"It feels so funny to call you that, after calling you 'Mytho' all those years!" said Fakir.

"If you called me that by habit," responded Siegfried, "It would not offend me one bit!"

They then turned their attention to the duck, and Siegfried stroked her head, saying, "And how is my deliveress, Princess Tutu, doing today?"

She never ceased to be amazed that he still called her "Tutu," despite what he now knew was the truth about her. She responded by hopping into his arms, and giving him the biggest hug a duck could muster. She then hopped into Rue's arms and hugged her as well. "Hello, Duck, I missed you too!"

"Speaking of which," interrupted Fakir, "it's been months since I last heard from you. What have you been up to?"

Siegfried rolled his eyes, and said, "I've been touring the principality, allowing people to see me, get to know me and Rue, formal meetings, cabinet meetings, hospital openings, and so on, and so forth."

"Sounds quite interesting," said Fakir.

"Actually, it got to be quite boring at times!" said Rue, "I cannot believe how aggravating I must have been at one time!"

"What do you mean by that?" asked Fakir, the duck quacking in concurrence, as they all walked to the dock.

"When one was as snobbish as I used to be," she continued, "you cannot see how others see you. You do not realize how aggravating one was. I guess it's paybacks for all those years."

Siegfried put his arm around her shoulder and squeezed her close, as if to say, "It's alright, darling."

She continued, "These people have their noses in the air so high, they can't even smell the very thing of which life is made! Sadly, I talk from experience."

The duck pointed to where her ear should be as if she were human, made a cutting motion, pointed towards the academy, and mimed snobbishness, stuffing her beak high in the air. Essentially, she said, "Sounds like half the kids at the academy!"

They all laughed, having come to learn the duck's versions of sign language, (a combination of standard and ballet mime.) Fakir then asked, "What brings you here today?"

The prince then, (and quite outside of royal decorum,) took off his shoes and socks, rolled up his pants, sat on the edge of the dock, and began to soak his feet. "To be honest with you," he said, "I needed a break! I am so not used to all this royal decorum and doting. I know it comes with the territory, but, sometimes I just have to feel…well…common."

Rue, but this point, had taken off her pumps and sat beside her beau, leaning her head on his shoulder consolingly, and the duck was perched on his other thigh, leaning her head on his belly, as he caressed her back. Fakir smiled, chuckled, and muttered, "Moron!"

Fakir waked up and said, "Hey, we're going back to finish school. That's a good break from things."

Siegfried then said, "True, although I hope that people will associate with me. I mean, either people do not approach because they are uncertain in how to approach, or they act like I am a pop star!"

"How's that different from before?" asked Fakir.

"Now I can react to it," said Siegfried.

"Well, I wouldn't worry too much," said Fakir, "Ever since the people's lives have been returned to them, they have no memory of past events. I mean, they know me, but not in the same way. They act like you never existed before they knew you as the prince, Rue is the lucky girl that won your heart, and they have no memory of Duck. All the anthropomorphs are gone, and Mr. Katt has gone back to being a normal cat, and quite a prolific one at that! Only me, and Autor, outside of us, have any memory of the past, as well as the Bookmen."

Rue then said, "Well, baby, if you wanted a fresh start, you certainly have one."

They sat silent for a time, and then Siegfried said, "So, speaking of the Bookmen, what project do they have for you now?"

Fakir then turned and retrieved the manuscript, and then presented it to Siegfried. His eyes brightened, and then he said, "Fakir, you must make this your priority and finish it as soon as possible!"

Everyone looked shocked at his reaction and he said, "I shall explain!"


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter II

_Music: Danse Macabre, Anitra's Dance_

Siegfried then began to tell his story: "Ever since I received all of my heart, and since we were able to finish the story, I have slowly been able to regain my memory. Now that it has fully returned, I shall fill you in on my past. In truth, I was born centuries ago, and I am quite familiar with the activities of Drosselmyer. He actually tried to use his powers to wrest the throne from me and my mother—one Princess Adelheid."

They all looked shocked at this, and Fakir just had to ask the obvious, "Is what happened here what happened to your mother?"

"Sadly, yes," he continued, "In the town, there were five practitioners of the black arts. At that time, if they had been caught, they certainly would have been burned at the stake for this, and because they were murderers! Drosselmyer took advantage of this, transforming my mother into a good sorceress who could do battle with them. To make a long story short, she used a diamond in the rough as a focus within which to trap them. However, all this was as Drosselmyer wrote, and he caused it so, that she was entrapped with them. Now, somewhere in Goldkronesburg, the diamond is buried, though accessible. Yet, he wrote the tragedy in line with how must tragedies go. He left a sliver of hope. Her magic was such that, combined with theirs whosoever would find it could wish one wish that would be granted, and this would set her soul free to be at peace. However, if anyone were to which another, this would release the five, and also bring bad results for the wish made."

"But, darling," said Rue, shocked at his past and knowing that this was the first she had heard this, "How do you play into this?"

"It wasn't long after finishing this story that he began what was to be his masterpiece," continued Siegfried, "Of course, this involved me. Yet, his few trusted aids had learned that his time was short, because the villagers had caught on to what was happening, and they were prepared to end his mischief. As a precaution, he had that machine built that you destroyed to continue to control the town from beyond the grave. He also set things as such, that, if it came down to it, he could literally entrap me in the pages of his manuscript with the Raven, to be locked in eternal combat in an unfinished tale. All this he did and all happened as he had foreseen. The townsfolk unwittingly entrapped themselves in the story, and locked it into place. Everyone was unaware that they were trapped in the town, and none could either leave or enter the town unless it made sense to the story. This is something that Tutu observed as she was working to restore my heart. Times advanced, and some modern things were allowed, but were mixed some old renaissance feel to it all."

"How did you get our?" asked Fakir.

"Because the tale was unfinished," continued Siegfried, "and because the bridge between fantasy and reality was left open, we managed to find the bridge after centuries of fighting. I exited, but the Raven was in hot pursuit. That's when all we know transpired. Remember how you told me that you thought you conjured up those ravens, Fakir?"

"Like I could forget that!" said Fakir, rolling his eyes.

"It wasn't you," retorted Siegfried, "It was a result of the Raven's play for world conquest. Remember, it wasn't long after that you found me, locked into this bodily age without a soul, awaiting an end to the tale."

"Therefore," interjected Rue, "your claim to the throne was quite legitimate."

"Yes," he said, "but now, my mother can have peace."

"You're not suggesting that I rewrite the tale so your mother was not trapped?" asked Fakir.

"No," said Siegfried, "for I hear what you fear. It would be too great a disturbance to the time/space continuum. You could quite write us form existence. You just have to find a way to set her free."

"Then, give me time," said Fakir, "You've sped things up, but I still have to skim the story to ensure proper characterization, and that I keep it all in context. It has to be done right."

"Of course," said Siegfried, looking a bit sad. Fakir then said, "As soon as I can, I will get on it!"

All this time, the drake had watched the exchange, at a loss as to what was said, lacking an understanding of the language. He then saw the sad eyes of the prince, and asked the duck, "Who is that?"

"He's the one that outlawed duck hunting in the principality!" she said, "And he's a good friend."

"But he looks so sad," he said, and then embraced his calf to try to cheer him up. Siegfried, now brought to by the odd sensation of wet feathers on his leg, said, "Hello! I have a wet duck attached to my leg!"

The duck quacked, chuckled, pointed to the drake, did the mime for "love," and pointed at Siegfried. "Um…yes…I see this," he said, "Now, could you tell him 'You're welcome,' and have him let go?"

This the duck did, and the drake let him go, returning to the rest of the flock. Siegfried then turned to Fakir, and said, "I shall pick you up for school tomorrow. Bring Tutu with you."

"What?" said Fakir, "I don't think they will like that."

"Leave that to me," said Siegfried, "Besides, you cannot keep her cooped up all winter. What would she do? Unless she plans to migrate, I would keep her with us."

He then turned to the duck and said, "Are you going to migrate for the winter?"

She took the position of refusal, and then flew into the arms of Fakir, embracing him. "Well, I guess that answers that! See you tomorrow!"

They all gave a group hug, and the couple prepared to go. However, as they did, they saw the oddest sight. Nearly 100 ducks in the lake were waiving good-bye to him! He, with a confused look on his face, returned the wave, and the couple began to leave. However, as they did, the duck could have sworn she heard one of them say, "When we come back in the spring, we need to stay here—she's got it going on!"

Meanwhile, Drosselmyer was watching the whole thing with great delight. He knew that he could now act, and exact his revenge on Goldkronesburg, the principality, and eventually, all them who broke off his control to begin with. All he had to do was wait for his distant grandson to put pen to the manuscript and start the cogs moving again. Once done, he could then sneak in and add his own "embellishments" to the story. However, before that could happen he had to watch and see who would step forward and give him what he needed to get the ball rolling. After all, in his position, time no longer held meaning, and thus, he had all the time in the world!

Fakir spent time getting his things ready for the next day, and played some relaxing music. While he did this, thoughts turned to the conversation earlier that day, and the sense of urgency on the face of Siegfried. He should have been amazed at just how old he truly was, (which would explain his hair color.) However, considering how the fantasy world painted its brushstroke across the principality, it was hard to be surprised at anything, especially when one brushstroke now sat in his house. As "Anitra's Dance" came up, he looked over at the duck, and saw how she contentedly twirled and danced around the room. She had not forgotten what she had been, retained her intelligence, and still danced. In fact, she practiced whenever she could! He watched her, remembering how that they had once been foes, and then he remembered how her courage saved the lives of Rue, Siegfried, and even his own. In fact, she had even managed to soften him some. He could not be bitter anymore, especially towards her. He loved her dearly, and he did not know if he could go on of anything happened to her. He watched her dance, and she now danced with a confidence and peace he never saw her possess as a girl. He had to assume that she now had all the confidence in the world, having helped curtail the Raven's plan, not as Tutu, but as herself—a duck! In fact, with his help, Tutu emerged from her astrally, and through the duck, gave Siegfried what he needed to finish the job. Sometimes, he wondered if Tutu had been an actual person. Knowing Drosselmyer, this was a possibility! Could it have been that, when she turned into a speck of light, she eventually came back as a duck? Maybe one day, he could uncover the truth. Still, she also showed a confidence of someone who was grounded, and rooted in who she was, and someone who loved herself. As she danced, though her dance was not quite as graceful as Tutu, much of Tutu shown through. When the music ended, she was in a deep curtsey, and she looked up to see Fakir watching her intently. An awkward moment arose. They stared at each other for about a good 20 seconds. Yes, the romance was thick enough to walk on, however, where to go from here was the awkward thing. He scooped her up, and embraced her. "I love you so much," he said, "What do we do?"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter III

_Music: Fourth Brandenburg_ _Concerto, First Movement_

The next morning, Fakir awoke to the sound of running water, and the sound of quacking that was actually in a recognizable tune. The water stopped, so he thought nothing of it, and curled back up, awaiting the alarm. The quack-singing continued. Now he had to know. He put on his robe, and entered the kitchen to see a soapy duck reaching for the spigot, turning it on, and begin to rinse off. Once she had done this, she turned off the water, hopped out, kicked open a top draw, and began to dry off with a clean dish towel. "Getting ready?" asked Fakir quite amused at the sight. "Quack!" she affirmed, with a big smile, and somewhat of a thumb's up. He chuckled on just how humanized she had become. However, she then did something that made a harsh reminder of what she was. She floated herself off the counter, went out the pet door put there for her, and then proceeded to down some gravel, eat some grass, and pluck a few worms out of the ground, sucking them down like spaghetti. Because he knew her past, he then wanted to wretch and vomit. He then reminded himself why he never watched her eat breakfast! He left her to it to get ready himself. At one time, he worried about leaving her alone like this. Yet, she dispelled this when a hawk tried to make a meal out of her one day. Because of her dancing ability, and by what Fakir had taught her, she first wore it out in its vain attempt to catch her, and then she clobbered it! Word must have spread to the other raptors to leave her alone, because nothing like this had ever happened since!

When Fakir emerged, looking sharp in his school uniform, the duck was just washing down the last of breakfast, and not one, but _two_ limousines pulled up. From the front came what looked like royal pages, and they held a pillow, which held the Swan Sword. The chauffeur from the second limo ran to the back and allowed Siegfried to emerge. All Fakir could ask was, "So, what is the occasion?"

However, Siegfried stepped forward, all businesslike, and said, "Fakir Schmidt and Tutu, kneel before me."

They looked at each other uncertainly, and then automatically took knees. The pages with the sword came forward, and a third stood ready with parchments in hand. Siegfried took the sword, tapped each shoulder, and tapped the side of his head. Siegfried then announced, "For your unswerving service and the principality, and for the care and aid you provided me all those years, I dub thee Fakir Schmidt, high protector of the crown and principality. Arise, Sir Fakir!"

As he arose, one of the pages handed a medallion to Siegfried, who put it around the neck of Fakir, and said, "This marks your official position. Before refuse this, know that you fully deserve this, and it has been a long time in coming. You may only have been given the role of a knight for the story, but now you can really be what you always should have been. What goes around comes around, my friend."

The page that had the parchments handed one over to Fakir, upon which was the official decree, officially notarized with the royal seal. Fakir was speechless, and could only choke out, "Thank you."

At this, Rue emerged, and Siegfried turned his attention to the duck. He very gently did the sword work, and said, "For bravery and self-sacrifice above and beyond the call of duty—that befitting a royal princess—I hereby dub thee Princess and Dame Tutu: princess and high protector of all the waterfowl in the entire realm. Arise, your highness!"

When she did, Rue produced a pendant marked with her own royal seal, and produced a white feather ring her size, (just like what she wore as Princess Tutu,) rigged together with a small tiara. She placed it on her head, and it was then that they all saw the facial resemblance between the duck and Tutu. The duck, (Tutu,) signed, "Thank you," and curtsied. "Wear it well," said Siegfried, and he handed over the official decree. With that, he then said, "Now, let's go to the academy."

They approached the moat that surrounds the academy, and prepared to pass under the old keep that now acted as the administrative offices. Fakir noiticed that the chauffeur left, who also was the royal bodyguard. He had to ask, "Where did your bodyguard go?"

"You're here!" he said, "Thus, there is no need for me to fear."

Fakir was not sure about this, but let it go for the time being. Meanwhile, all the students saw the four enter, and began to buzz. They all knew the three, but, because of the nature of the old curse, no one remembered who Duck had been, and things seemed in more of a realistic state. However, some things did not change. When Pique and Lillie saw Tutu, they both gushed, and started paying attention to her. "What a cute duck!" said Pique, "Is that your pet?"

Tutu really did not like being referred to as a "pet" and scowled at her. "Wow," she said, "She sure has a nasty disposition."

"She just probably wants to be free," said Lillie, "The poor thing: a wild duck, held in captivity, looking for love. It's so adorable, I just can't stand it!"

Fakir began to be a bit cross, and said, "Actually, ladies, she is quite a free duck, and free to do as she pleases, and she doesn't like glad handlers!"

His scowl backed the up a step and they were sorry they had approached. "Gee," said Pique, "Still the same grumpy Fakir, isn't he?"

Siegfried spoke up and said, "Its okay, ladies, she just needs to get to know you. Besides, you shall be seeing more of her than you realize."

They both shrugged their shoulders, and moved on. Tutu, on the other hand, had to chuckle a bit. "Get to know them?" she thought, "I know them more than they realize. That's going to be fun!"

They finally reached the building marked "Der Tansenhalle," and prepared for class. Everyone was quite surprised to see Fakir and the prince enter with the duck. The instructress spotted this, (one Gretchen Von Trapp,) and immediately protested, "Herr Fakir, the duck will have to wait outside!"

"_Mien Frau_," said the prince, "The duck must stay. She is very valuable to us."

"Your highness, please forgive my forwardness," she said, "but you understand about obeying rules, being a prince, and you know that I must enforce them."

"Actually," said Rue, "She'll make a great mascot. She is quite intelligent. I don't think there are any rules against mascots, are there?"

"Well, true, Frauline," she said, "but this is highly irregular!"

"Let's just show you what the duck had got!" said Fakir. With that, he whispered something in the ear, set her down, and found a spot along the kickboard, using the outcropping as a balance beam. Fakir then went and whispered something in the ear of the piano player, he began to play a Bach minuet form one of the Brandenburg Concertos, and then Tutu began to shock the room. She began to perform the developee, and then progress into the basic moves and dance steps. She finished in a deep curtsey, and then room sat there as if they were a school of codfish—mouths agape. Frau Von Trapp was the most shocked, considering that Tutu actually did better than most of her intermediate students! To break the tension, Fakir said, "Not only this, but, she will also learn and retain anything you teach her. She'll make a model student!"

"What's her name?" asked Frau Von Trapp.

"Princess Tutu," said Siegfried, "top waterfowl in the realm, and that is not a joke."

At that, she waked up to her and knelt down, saying, "Top waterfowl, eh? You have certainly shown it, your highness. Welcome to our class!"

With that, she extended her hand, and Tutu extended a wing, as they shook limbs. Then Von Trapp stood up and said, "However, because you are now a part of this class, I will expect you to perform and follow instructions like anyone else, and I shall be just as strict on you as I would any other student. Do you understand?"

Tutu smiled and bowed. Von Trapp then said, "Good! Now, your highness, please take your place with the others."

Once she had, she then said, "Now, let us begin the class!"

Frau Von Trapp was indeed strict as any good dance instructor would be, however, in her teaching, she was very quick to praise, and she always told them to see the best in themselves. When it came time for the classroom phase, she full expected to see the duck sit idly by. Her jaw nearly hit the floor when she saw her grip a pen between her wings and proceed to write, occasionally employing her beak to steady the pen. She felt like taking out her eyes, rubbing them on her shirt, and putting them back, just to be sure that she was seeing things right. Just how much more was she going to see today? Her writing was a bit childlike, but it was legible. By the end of all, she actually scrawled "Princess Tutu" into her attendance and grade book, figuring, "Well, if she's going to contribute, I might as well grade her!"

The duck actually danced better than most humans she knew!

At lunch, everyone sat around the fountain eating, and Tutu plopped into it for a quick swim. Of course, this caught the attention of all those around, and they began throwing popcorn, chips, and bread crusts to her, all of which she happily gobbled down. However, it did not take long for Rue, Fakir, and Siegfried to figure out what was going on. Soon, she was the center of attention. After it was over, Tutu hopped out, shook herself off, just as Fakir came forward. "You little mooch!" he said, "You knew that would happen!"

Tutu just pumped her eyebrows up and down and smirked. Fakir then said, "Oh well, I guess this bag of your favorite mustard sardines is going to have to go to waste," and he held them out. Yet, before he pulled it back, Tutu was already airborne, and snatched the bag from his hand as she flew away. "Come back here, you little…" shouted Fakir, but Rue told him, "Oh, leave her alone! She's just playing with you. Besides, all that dancing must have worked up an apatite. Remember: she's a duck, and she's going to expend more energy, and faster than us."

"I just don't like it when she tries to take advantage of both worlds," he grumbled.

"And if you had been through what she went through," said Siegfried, "would not you wan to try to create as many joyous moments as you could for yourself?"

"Does she have to do this?" asked Fakir?

"She doesn't do it all the time," she answered, "Let it go!"

They caught up to her, just as she was sucking down the last sardine. She sat there, with a contented look on her face, and she let out a very un-princess-like belch. "Come on, you feather covered pig," said Fakir, "And if you gained five pounds, I would have no sympathy for you!"

The note-taking pattern continued in the academic classes, although her heavy lunch began to weigh down on her, and she had to fight off sleep. Fakir only looked up at her, and said, quite unsympathetically, "Serves you right!"

Class was over for the day, and the four began to head off campus, with Tutu constantly napping in Fakir's arms. Indeed, it had been a long day for her. However, they had not gotten far, when they passed by the building marked "Die Musikhalle," and began to hear some of the sweetest singing they had ever heard. It was so good; it even awoke Tutu and caught her attention. They just had to see who this was. They entered the main music room and saw a brown-haired young man in the "stocky-but-not-fat" department, hair parted to the side, with handsome looks, but a Roman nose. He stood next to the piano as his instructor played. He was singing "Che Geldia Manina" from the opera "La Bohemme" in a rich tenor that actually sounded like it had a bass tambour. However, he could lilt at times, enough to make a stone weep! There was so much color to his voice; it surprised everyone from the twists and turns that his voice took. When they had finished, applause came form the back. The two were unaware that they had an audience, and immediately began to apologize and render proper homage when they realized who it was. Siegfried just smiled and waived it off, and said, "That was phenomenal!"

The instructor excused himself, and said to the young man to make sure to lock up when he and his friends were done. He then started to speak, but his German wasn't the best. He finally said, frustrated, and in English, "Oh, my German is terrible! I'm sorry. I'm butchering it, aren't I?"

"Your American?" said Fakir, in English.

"People say that in such a surprised tone," the young man responded, "people assume that I am some kind of international man of mystery."

He then put his hand on his cheek, as if he was telling a secret, and whispered, "I've been working on it like mad!"

All of them laughed at his candor, and Rue asked, "What is your name?"

"I am so glad you all speak English!" he responded, "I am Giuseppe Caruso."

"Are you related to the Great Caruso?" asked Siegfried.

"Well, not directly," he answered, "I think he's in there somewhere, at least that's what I am told."

"You sound disappointed in that," responded Fakir.

"Its not so much that," said Caruso, "Its just that, when I showed an aptitude for voice at an early age, suddenly there was this great expectation from everyone to do the 'uphold the family name,' kind of thing. Suddenly, everyone started pushing me towards singing. Now, don't get me wrong, I love to sing. It's just that, I'm always been pushed towards opera, and yet, I like all kinds of singing. I' so sick of trying to live up to everyone's expectations. There is no way I could surpass 'The Voice,' and I do not intend to do so. Too many have wrecked their careers doing so."

He caught himself, and said, "I'm sorry: I'm venting on you."

"Its okay," said Rue, "Sometimes, you have to get it off your chest."

Tutu wanted to tell him that she knew what he felt, but she was not sure he would understand. Thus, she just flew over to him, landed in his arms, and hugged him. "Well," he said, "It looks like someone has a sympathetic ear!"

"Actually," said Siegfried, "It's empathetic."

"No way!" he said, surprised, "You? You've got it made in the shade!"

She looked at him quizzically, and he said, "You're a bird. No one expects anything form you. You can do what you want, when you want. You're completely free."

He set her down on the piano bench, and said, "If I had to be a bird, I think I would be a parrot."

"Quack?" she asked.

"Sure! I'd still be able to sing, talk to people, and yet be totally free," he said.

He thought for a moment, and then began to sing "Free as a Bird," by the Beatles. It was not opera, but it was still quite good, sang with the same passion.

As he finished, a familiar sight walked in. She rendered proper homage to the crown, and that caught Caruso's attention. "And how's my little butterfly?" he said, smiling broadly. She practically danced her way to him, and she said, 'Very well, my songbird."

It was Freya; know by many as the Flower Girl. Tutu remembered her well, considering how her life had been endangered but just a year before, and how she'd been able to rescue her. She was so happy to see her better than ever, and now with a sweetheart. She waddled up and embraced her leg. This gave Freya a slight start, but then she smiled at the bright eyes and smile of the duck, and she said, "Quite the affectionate one, aren't we?"

She had no memory of the past, which, though slightly disappointed, still was a good thing. She had no painful memories to bear. "I see you have an audience for your practice," she said.

"Practice?" asked Siegfried.

"Oh, yes," said Caruso, "My band is getting some sets together for the first school dance and social."

"What do you play?" asked Rue.

"Because of the eclectic crowd," said Caruso, "We have to play a variety. We do contemporary pop, modern pop, rock, R&B, jazz. By the way, just call me Joe—it saves time."

At this point, the band showed up: a standard rhythm section, a few horns and strings, and keys. Everyone acknowledged Siegfried, and they took their places. One then said, "Let's start with our rock set!"

Joe, (Caruso,) strapped on an electric guitar, and they began to play "Circle Sky." Tutu quickly retreated to the audience from the din. He followed up, saying to the duck, "Here's one for you!" and jumped into "Sweet Young Thing!" They continued their set with some Billy Joel, Simon & Garfunkel, Sinatra, Dean Martin, and so forth. Joe then said, "Here's one for you, honey," and ripped into "I'm a Believer." By the time it was done, it was about 5 o'clock, and he said, "Okay, we'll continue tomorrow, we gotta eat, and get our homework done."

They all said their good-byes, and then realized that their audience hadn't left. Joe then said, "Well, I hoped you liked it! Thank you for staying."

He began to pack his guitar, and said, as a joke, "We don't do birthdays, but we are available for weddings and funerals!"

It then surprised all when Siegfried then said, "Great! Ours is on June 20th, next summer, so you can play the reception!"

A stunned silence filled the room. He followed up with, "Really, you bunch are great! I'd love to have you."

"Hmm, what will some say about what we play?" asked Joe, a bit confused.

Siegfried smiled, and said, knowingly, "I'm the crowned head—what are they going to say?"

"Well, it looks like we got a gig, fellas!" said Joe, "Rank doth have its privileges!" and they all cheered. They all then took their leaves, leaving the four, Joe and Freya. Freya then said, "Oh I should have mentioned, they are all in the ballet school with me! I should have recognized Tutu."

"What about her?" asked Joe.

"The duck can dance!" she said, "She's the class mascot!"

He looked at her, and said, "And she is quite the charmer at that!"

"I would like to speak to you some more," said Siegfried, "Can you meet us tomorrow at lunch?"

"Sure," he said, "I'll see you there."

"And bring your guitar;" added Rue, "It could be more fun that way!"

"Not a problem," said Joe, and they all had made a new friend that day.

However, none of this was unnoticed. Drosselmyer had seen the whole thing, and saw Caruso as a possible wrinkle in the plot that would aid in his plot. He just had to wait to see what Fakir writes, and he would move from there.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter IV

_Music: In the Great Hall of the Mountain King_

Three weeks had passed since they first met Caruso, and the first dance was a smash hit. In that time, Fakir had finished reading the manuscript, and had just laid down a few sentences before the dance that night: just the chance for which Drosselmyer was waiting! He was sitting, watching things, when he saw Fakir begin to write. At that same moment, the cogs started to move—pay dirt! He watched as Fakir and company left for the dance, and he figured that that would be the best time to act. He knew his forays into that world were limited, but he figured that would be worth it. He entered one of his coffin shaped clocks that lined one end of the story, and entered the former world. He chewed on a couple of plot point, knowing that he both left a chance for hope, or a chance for doom. To remind you, he ended the story like this: if one were to find the diamond, he or she could make one wish upon it. It would be granted, and it would free the princess. However, if one were too greedy, and wished again, it would release the warlocks, and crate chaos all over again. Yet, the way he would do it, he was certain that it would make matters worse, because what he wanted to do sat a bit outside the plot, and he knew it could disrupt things to no end. Now, just what would happen, he did not know, but he knew it would be delicious. Of course, he was going to start with the duck: the one that cause the whole mess to begin with. He also decided to involve that Caruso kid. He looked like the perfect character for tragedy: he was happy, had a great love, a great future. How tragic would it be to see all that go down the drain? He entered, and made a beeline for the manuscript. He wrote quickly, yet carefully, setting events for early that coming morning, as if he were setting a time bomb. He began to feel the pains of the stress being in this world, just as he laid down his last words, and exited. It had hurt, but he knew it would be worth it. Now, all he had to do was wait for things to happen. If all went well, he wanted to provide the warlocks with safe haven from within the story itself, from where they could work their deeds. That way, no matter what Fakir wrote, they could thwart it. It would be the story with no end, until Fakir died. If he ever had offspring, then he could get them to write, and keep the misfortune going. Why kill any of them? Torturing them for the rest of their natural existence was much more fun, and far more tragic.

Meanwhile, at the dance, everyone was having a ball. They covered the boards in music, and left everyone with a great memory. Even Tutu got involved, flooring everyone with her interpretations of the music. She was quickly moving from class mascot to school mascot. Everyone loved the duck. After the dance, Siegfried offered rides to Fakir, Tutu, Joe, and Freya. For the first time in a while, Siegfried felt like a normal teenager, laughing, joking, sharing school stories, reminiscing, and generally letting his hair down. Freya and Joe were the first two to be dropped off, did not want to be too far away from Joe, and, besides, they wanted time "alone." After whishing Fakir and Tutu a good weekend, the royal couple went on. There was a strong scent of romance in the air, and everyone was feeling it. Fakir was holding Tutu close to his chest, and she could feel his heart racing as she snuggled closely. "Duck, I love you so much," said Fakir silently, and caressed her gently. She rubbed head on his chest. She wanted so dearly to say those words back, but how could she? Moreover, she was a duck; he was a human. No matter how content they were, no matter how long they stayed together, this would always be a barrier. They entered, and he set her on her pillow on her side of the bed, taking off her necklace and head rig, so she could sleep comfortably. He began to ready himself for bed, and it was then she finally understood her anxiety: because of how things were, she would never be able fully to reciprocate all the love she had been shown, and there never could be an expression of their loved that really met their needs as they both wished. As she drifted off, she desperately wished there could be a way for this to happen. She knew that all Fakir needed to do was write a story about her becoming…well…whatever was needed. However, Fakir explained to her that, even if that were the wish of both of them, anything that happened after that would be a part of the story, and could it truly be said that either one would then be acting out of free will? Moreover, there was the temptation to write than needed, and then use and manipulate her. This, he would not risk. Yet, there had to be a way.

Later that night, on the porch, Freya and Joe were finally able to pry themselves apart after sitting, talking, and…whatnot…for hours. However, just as they were about to part, Joe locked up and gained a blank stare. "Baby, what's wrong?" asked Freya.

Joe said automatically, "I must go. I must be free—free as a bird."

"What!" exclaimed Freya, and she saw it was obvious that there was something terribly wrong. "Must find the diamond," he said robotically, "No time to lose."

He then stood up and began to walk. Frey tried to pull him back, but he was too strong. All she could do was follow, and beg him to stop.

Meanwhile, back at the smith shop, Tutu awoke in a start, and suddenly felt a compelling to go to the park, which contained the remnant of the oak tree that named Fakir as the successor of Drosselmyer. Robotically, she stood and began to walk off the bed. In so doing, she stepped on the foot of Fakir, which woke him. By the time that he regained his faculties to react, she had already hopped off the bed and was heading out the door. He started to go after her, and then noticed the manuscripts. He had been too tired and distracted to notice that things had been disturbed, and now he took a closer look. The first thing he noticed was that the handwriting was not his. In fact, it matched the rest of the manuscript. All Fakir could say or think was, "Drosselmyer!"

He quickly began to read, and realized what Drosselmyer was up to. There was no time to figure out how he did this, but he had to stop her. He knew he would never catch her if she decided to fly, so he made a phone call.

It was about 1:30 in the morning, and a call came to Siegfried's room unexpectedly. If a call came through at this point, it meant it was an emergency, and it was only one person, because only one person outside of the palace knew that number—Fakir. He awoke with a start, and snatched the receiver off the phone. "Fakir," he said, still a bit groggy, "What's wrong?"

"It's Tutu," said Fakir, and now Siegfried was wide-awake.

"What happened?" he exclaimed.

"I don't know yet," said Fakir, "but get Rue, and tell her to bring an extra night gown, a dress, robe, something, and meet me at the Mittelburgespark."

"Okay," said Siegfried, all confused, "but why all the rigmarole?"

"If what I think has happened, happened," said Fakir, "then we may have more problems than just Tutu."

"On my way," said Siegfried, and he hung up. He quickly jumped up; donned some sweats and slippers, and he went to Rue's room, (since they were not yet wed.) He pounded on the door, and he heard a few steps and some stumbling. She cracked the door open in time to hear Siegfried holler, "Ready the car! It's an emergency!"

"Baby, what's wrong?" she said, wiping the sleep out of her eyes.

"Grab a dress or nightgown," he said frantically, "Its Tutu—there's trouble."

Now she was fully awake, and said, "Coming!"

She went to the closet and grabbed an old housedress as she put on her robe and slippers. As soon as she emerged, they both ran for the car.

Meanwhile, at the park, Joe was trying to, and finally opened a tool shed, and retrieved a spade, all the time that Freya was vainly trying to pull him away and beg him to stop. He then went to a spot where the old oak tree used to stand, the same spot that had empowered Fakir. As he began to dig, a duck flew over the wall and landed near. All this time, Fakir was running as fast as he could, holding the manuscript, lest Drosselmyer return to cause more trouble. As he did, the royal limo pulled up, and took him in. Back at the park, Joe had finally unearthed the diamond. It was a rough diamond about the size of a cantaloupe: a treasure for any gem dealer. He knelt, took it out of the hole, and set it before him. As he did so, the duck approached and extended a wing to touch the stone as he did this himself. He then said, "I wish I could become that which would make me the most free."

At the same time, Tutu quacked her wish, which, in English, would have been, "I wish there could be some way I could reciprocate my love to Fakir in the fullest, best way possible."

The diamond began to glow, and then a bright beam of light shot up from it, and it then engulfed the entire park.

As they approached the park, they saw the flash, and though the worst. The driver pulled up to the gate, and they all exited before the driver could move to let them out. When they rushed in, they were stunned at the sight. The area was charred, but the three individuals were untouched. Freya was on her knees, weeping loudly over the sight. Once they got a closer look, the two boys turned around, and told Rue to take care of it. When she approached, she saw, not a duck, but a red haired girl about 15 or 16 years old. Not far from her, breathing, but unconscious, was a milky white cockatoo. By this point, Freya was cradling it, sobbing over it, saying, "Joey, why—why did you do this? Come back to me!"

She would tend to that, but first, she had to tend to…well…just who was this? The girl moaned, and began to right herself. Once she had, there was no mistaking the face—it was Duck. She was older, but it was her, no question, and looking more like Tutu had in this older state. She then said, "Oh, where am I?"

She then shook her head, both to be more awake, and because of what just happened. "How did I…? Huh?" she said, "How am I speaking? I…" and then noticed her hands for the first time. She touched various spots of herself, and then screamed, "AAAHHH! What happened to me?"

"I was about to ask you the same question," said Rue, helping Duck to her feet. She then handed her a dress, and said, "I suggest you put this on, because the boys are here."

"But…" she hesitated, and then asked, "But why did this happen," as she put on the dress. Before, it would have been too big, but it now fit her. Rue said, "You can turn around now, boys."

The boys were not quite prepared to see the duck/Duck/Tutu, like this. They had prepared their minds never to see the like this again, but there she was. Duck then said, "I know, I'll just do what I used to," and then let out a happy "Quack!" Nothing happened. "Nooo!" she moaned, "This isn't supposed to be!"

"I don't understand," said Siegfried, "You're a girl again. This is a bad thing, because…?"

"No, its not that," said Duck, "I was only a girl because of someone else's willingness to use me for wrong. I am not a girl."

"Isn't this better," said Rue, "I mean, now…"

"Rue, please understand," said Duck, "Even before the end of the story, I learned that people…and animals, cannot be what they are not, or else their lives will never have peace."

Everyone stared at her in stunned silence. She then said, "Did I have more peace like this, or as I should be? Was Siegfried a better person now, or as Mytho? Is Fakir better as a medieval knight, or the writer and dancer that he is? Are you Rue, or Kraehe?"

Everyone had to admit that she had a point. It seemed that a mental maturity came with the natural body. She then said, "How did this happen?"

Fakir then produced the manuscript. "It was Drosselmyer," he said, "Somehow, he took what I started, and did all this."

Siegfried then said, "That means we are trapped in another story."

"It's worse than that," came another female voice, "and there is no telling just how bad things may get."

Everyone looked up to see floating there an apparition of a beautiful woman wearing flowing robes and a crown. "Mother," said Siegfried, "You're free."

"Yes, my son," she said, "and it seems at a cost."

She then pointed to Freya, (who had now stopped crying,) and the bird, and she was awed at the sight. At that moment, the bird began to stir, and then said, "Ow! Tell that guy with the jackhammer to lay off!"

Yet, his eyes began to focus, and he then realized where he was, and in whose arms he now rested. At first, he was embarrassed at the first sight he saw. Then, he was up like a shot when he realized his shrunken state. "Brack!" he exclaimed in quite parrot-like fashion, and flipped over backwards onto the ground. When he made his feet, it was then he realized his present state. He saw the wings, felt for his nose, felt a beak, and then exclaimed, "I'm a bird! Ack! What happened?"

"I believe I can explain," said Adelheid.

Everyone now focused on the sight. Fakir rehashed the whole thing on the wishing, and Adelheid said, "Nothing was said about two wishes simultaneously. Apparently, this was the result. Yes, both I, and the five were released, but apparently, the gemstone decided to fulfill you wishes by using one against the other. You wished to be human; you wished to be a bird."

"Hey, wait a minute!" said Joe, "I never mentioned 'bird.'"

"And I never mentioned wanting to be a human," said Duck.

"Aha!" said Adelheid, "But what did you say?"

They thought for a moment, and then Duck said, "I wished to be able to express my love for Fakir more fully."

"And I just wished to be freer—as free as I could be."

"However," she said, "You were a little vague in your wishes. Since 'bird' had to be in your heart somewhere, the gemstone must have provided its own interpretation by switching your humanity with her avian nature, and figured that this would satisfy both wishes."

"So, how do we fix this?" asked Joe, "I can't stay like this!"

"Nor do I wish him like this," said Freya.

"Fakir, you could always change it," said Rue.

"No!" said Fakir, "Meddling like that has already done too much. The only way to fix this is to play the story out, and decide for ourselves how it goes. I can then write the entire thing retroactively, and finish the tale."

"Where then do we take the story?" asked Duck to Adelheid, "You're free."

"Yes," she responded, "but those murderers are free as well. Let me tell you what happened before you all arrived for your friends."

"When we were freed, the five warlocks turned to attack me, but I fended them off by using a chunk of the diamond that came free when we were released. It was in my hand when we emerged. Apparently, it can be used to cram them back into the diamond, because they feared touching it. I thus tried to use it. Yet, before I could, everything froze, and a strange clock shaped like a coffin emerged. A voice said, 'If you want safe haven, come in here!'

They were panicked, as they dove in, and it vanished."

"That was Drosselmyer," said Duck.

"Do not tell me he's involved!" she said.

"Unfortunately, yes," said Fakir, "I could say that he is partly the reason why all of you are free."

"Mother," interjected Siegfried, "I wanted you free, but not like this."

He then realized how he had just tripped over his words, and then said, "Well, I mean…"

"I understand, my dear son," she said, as she drifted to him, "and maybe, it is a good this way, because we have a chance to stop both the warlocks and Drosselmyer once and for all."

"I don't understand?" said Siegfried.

"Son, I always have sought many options to things in order to solve problems," she said, "and it is something you must learn in order to rule well. Whenever it seems that bad things are on the horizon, remember that we can always make our own solutions. Always believe that there is another option, even when there seems no other way. We are in a story now, like before. Except now, we can use the misfortune against the source of our trouble. Who's to say that none that happened was to our own good? Come, and let us set our own destinies."

"How do we do that?" asked Duck.

"Ah, Duck," she said, "I sense there is, or was, something quite special about you."

She looked down; twiddling her thumbs, and said, "I used to be able to help people in a special way."

"Then perhaps we can tap into that again," said Adelheid.

"How?" asked Duck, now very curious.

Adelheid opened her hand and showed the diamond shard, which, by the power of the release, had been smoothed and polished into a teardrop shape about the size of an egg. She handed it to Duck, and said, "I shall dwell in it, and grant you the power to be whatever it was you were, and by it, we can entrap the warlocks and Drosselmyer forever."

"How do we proceed?" asked Fakir, his knight nature now rising.

"The first thin we must do is find out how much the story has affected things," said Adelheid, "then we have to see how the six of them are going to act in this, because there is horror that awaits if we do not act."

"How so?" asked Rue.

"Just because they are spirits does not mean that their murderous ways have died," answered Adelheid, "They can no longer harm thing in this form, but by their power, they may cause another to harm his or herself. They find the weakest point of the victim psychologically, and then try to exploit that weakness. Believe me, if Drosselmyer has them, he will use them to try to create the worst tragedies possible. Therefore, he shall release them, and then we can go from there."

"Then let us not wait any longer," said Siegfried, "Let us finally bring this man's evil to an end."

Adelheid then turned to Duck and said, "Keep the stone with you at all times, and when the need to be that it was that you were, hold it to your head, and concentrate on that."

With that, she entered the stone, and Duck put it into her pocket. However, Joe watching it all, said, "Okay, will someone PLEASE EXPLAIN TO ME WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?"

Freya picked him up, and Siegfried said, "Let us go to the palace, and we can fill the both of you in there."

Before they left the park, they buried the diamond, knowing that it would receive the six they sought, and they left. As they did, however, Duck showed signs of being worn out by the whole ordeal, Fakir came over, put an arm around her, and she put her arms around his chest. Then came one of those awkward moments again. However, this time, it was different. For the first time since the lake of despair, love was able to show its full blossom. Fakir now understood, and he said to himself, "Somehow without manipulating her life by my writing, I will keep you like this…somehow."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter V

_Music: Swan_ _Lake_—_Waltz_

Once at the palace, rooms were found for Duck, Freya, and Fakir. Joe was given a perch in Fakir's room, and quickly learned to sleep in that fashion. At the same time, Duck though about Joe, and realized that there would be things that he would need to know. When morning hit, she knew he would be hungry. Since this was the case, she knew that he probably had no gravel for his craw, which would make it impossible to him to digest his food. He would have to learn about that. In fact, he would have to learn all about being a bird if he was to make it, and there was actually much to learn for his own good. However, she began to think about what had happened to her. She was a girl again, but now, she had no way of going back, at least, no way until the story was over, and even that was no guarantee. At the same time, she wondered if going back was good at all. She took out the diamond and set it on the counter. She then went to the full length mirror and took off her dress. She wondered why she had advanced in age so quickly. Then the looked at her face, and stared at it for a long time. She looked more like Tutu than before, yet still younger. Yet, in her mind's eye, she superimposed her face now with Tutu and her true form, and asked herself, "Who is the real 'me?'"

The next morning, there was a knock at the door, and she slipped the dress on, and opened the door. A butler stood there with three maids, a long rolling rack of clothes, and tape measures. "Your highness," said the butler in a majestic fashion, "These ladies are here to take your measurements, and help you select your clothes."

"Y…your _highness_?" asked Duck, quite surprised.

"Of course," he said, "He explained that a cousin of his was visiting for a time, which would be you."

"Um…thank you," she said, "Is this his doing?"

"Most certainly, your highness," said the butler, "I also would like to know, if you do not mind my forwardness in asking, how did you end up with a Japanese name like 'Ahiru?'"

"Odd name," she thought, "I'll have to ask what that's all about."

She then said, "I...uh…have some Japanese blood in there…in the royal line…yes…um…my parents promised them that…um…they would name one child with a Japanese name…yeah, that's it!"

"Very good, your highness," he said, (which she was relieved that he bought it,) "My name is Hans, and I shall be looking after your needs while here."

"Thank you for your kindness," she said, and Hans motioned the ladies in as he took his leave. Before he left, she said, "Could you hold for a moment, please?"

She too some paper and scrawled down a few things, and said, "Could you take this to Miss Freya, please?"

"With pleasure, your highness," he said, and took his leave.

In the meantime, the maids began to take her measurements, and then they began to pick out outfits: formal wear, casual, business, and ballet clothes. When she asked why the ballet clothes were being selected, it was explained to her that they knew she danced ballet, and that she would be attending Goldkrone Academy, all on the prince's wishes. Now she was definitely going to be talking to the prince later! About this time, Freya and Joe emerged, and he looked quite sick. "Tried to eat without gravel, didn't you?" said Ahiru.

"Ugh!" said Joe, "I ate a peanut, and it's sitting on my stomach like a sack of wet rags!"

Ahiru said, "Could someone fetch his perch, please?"

One of the maids then quickly complied, and went to fetch the perch. Ahiru said, "A bird's digestive tract doesn't dissolve food like any other animal, so it has to ingest sand or small gravel to break down its food."

Joe looked disgusted at this suggestion, and said, "You're kidding, right?"

"'Fraid not," she said, with a sympathetic look on her face. About this time, the maids returned with the perch. Freya put Joe on the perch, and Ahiru saw the tray that held the gravel. She pointed, and said, "This is the stuff right here. All it will take is a couple of beak fills, and you'll be okay."

Joe shuffled over to it, took one look, and stuck out his tongue. Then he felt the pain a bit more, and finally resigned himself to his fate. He dipped in his beak twice, and quickly swallowed. He shook his head as it went down rough. He then went to the water tray and dipped in his beak. He then realized that it was almost impossible to swallow. Ahiru reached over and tilted his head back so he could swallow. He coughed, and said, "Thank you."

He then dipped in his beak again, and tilted his head back himself, having taken the hint. After about a minute of uncomfortable churning, he finally felt better. At this, Ahiru said, "If you're going to be stuck like that, I'm going to have to teach you how to survive as a bird, or else you're going to be in some misery!"

At this point, the maids had at least one casual dress ready to go, right about the time Hans returned. He knocked, entered, and said, "His highness wishes an audience with you three."

"Thank you,' said Ahiru, and then said, 'I'll go ahead and put this on, and be out in a minute."

"Very good," he said, and everyone left, as the maids took away the rack for alterations.

Everyone sat at a grand table as breakfast was served. The first thing that happened was the Freya and Joe was brought up to speed on all that had transpired. Then something odd happened. Freya had this look on her face like her head was swimming, and she then shook her head, as if she were awaking from a long sleep. She then said, "Oh my! I remember…I remember it all!"

"How is that possible?" asked Rue.

Siegfried thought for a moment, and then said, "It seems contact with this new story, and your involvement in the old one, combined with this reminder, must have snapped the amnesia the closing of the previous story caused."

"Makes sense to me," said Fakir.

Freya then looked over to Ahiru, and said, "That means," she hesitated, and then said, "That means you saved my life twice! You're Princess Tutu!" She jumped up and embraced her, saying again, "You saved my life twice! I owe you so much!"

Surprised, Ahiru returned the embrace, and said, "You're repayment to me will be to keep that pretty garden happy and healthy for me and all who love your flowers."

"Oh, I will…I WILL!" she said gleefully, and kissed Ahiru's cheek. It was then Ahiru sought for her questions to be answered. The first was, "Why the bluff, prince, and, what's with the name?"

"By saying that you were a visiting princess, I knew that they would treat you well, and it is a good disguise for you. Second, 'Ahiru' is the Japanese word for 'duck,' and I think that it sounds prettier than just calling you 'Princess Duck!'"

Everyone got a laugh out of this, and she said, "Okay, Ahiru it is."

Siegfried continued, "I do hope, however, that Princess Tutu is not far behind. We could use her help."

"If what your mother mentioned is correct, I don't think that that will be an issue," said Fakir. Ahiru was not so sure that this was the truth, but she knew that it would only be matter of time before she found out. Ahiru then asked, "Then, why does it seem that I have aged a few years since the last time I was a girl?"

Thinking for a minute, Fakir said, "Since ducks don't live as long as humans, then you, as a girl, must have been proportionally aged when you were changed."

That rattled her, and for two reasons. The first was because she did not realize the aging process. The second was that she suddenly realized that her time with Fakir would not be as long as a duck as it would be if she was human. This indeed frightened her. Now, she wondered all the more if being a duck once more when all was said and done would be wise. She knew that everyone needed to be his or herself, and she knew that her being human robbed Joe from being himself as well. Yet, what other options were there?

The next matter for discussion was formulating a plan to capture the six rebellious souls. The main question was how to recognize a threat. Rue the said, "Well, remember that Adelheid said they could not attack anyone directly. She did say that the go after one's mental weaknesses to get the job done."

"Then we simply have to look for people who are having serious problems along with many near brushes with disaster," said Siegfried, "Yet, we have to be careful and not make assumptions. By the way, Fakir, where is the manuscript?"

"One step ahead of you," said Fakir, "I had it sealed air tight in a bag, and then had it set in one of your most secure vaults."

"Good," said Siegfried, "At least that factor has been removed."

"Yet, how are we going to cover the whole town?" asked Freya, "Goldkronesburg is sizeable."

Joe then said, "Hey, if they want targets, they don't have to look further than the academy. I mean, man, talk about your ammo dump of neurotics!"

The words hit like a ton of bricks. Of course, the school made sense as the best target. Furthermore, if Drosselmyer had any inkling of revenge, then going after their peers would be something too delicious for him to pass up. After about a minute of silence, Siegfried then said, "Then that means we cannot stay here. We have to live on campus in order to keep a full-time vigil."

"Yet, what are they going to say about the web-footed wonder here when she shows up in her place?" said Joe, with Ahiru giving him a dirty look. He then said, "What will they say about me?"

Ahiru then said, "There is a possibility that with a new story started, and it having us as the principles, there may be a possibility that no one would notice."

"This is something that will have to be dealt with later," said Siegfried, "and we'll just have to play it by ear."

He then slapped the table, and said, "Then it is settled. I will insure that we shall all be lodged on campus from now on, and then we get to work on Monday, unless something happens that needs us right away."

Ahiru then said, "However, Joe, we have to work on you first."

"Uh…what?" he asked, "What do you mean?"

Ahiru sauntered up with an evil grin on her face, got right into Joe's, and said, "Since you have already shown that you know nothing about being a bird, the 'web footed wonder' here is going to have to teach you everything you will need to know to survive!"

By this point, Joe and Ahiru were nose to beak, Ahiru still having the same smile on her face, staring him right in the eyes. Joe now deeply regretted the comment.

Joe had no idea at all in what was involved in being a bird. He already leaned he had to relearn how to eat; now he realized he would have to relearn just about everything. He had to learn how to do a lot with his feet, how to groom, how to preen, even how to bathe. Though Ahiru initially acted like she was going to get revenge for his snide remarks, he found her to be quite a patient teacher. Then came the big lesson. She then said to Joe, "Okay, now extend your wings please."

He did, and she examined them closely. "Good," she said, "you still have all your flight feathers."

"Are you saying I can fly?" asked Joe, suspiciously.

"You have the equipment," she answered, "and there is no reason why you shouldn't learn. Besides, if you want to be more mobile, it is best you learn."

"Where do we start?" he asked.

"Okay," she answered, "lean straight forward, fan out your tail and flap. When you feel lift, let go of the perch and tuck in your legs."

He did, and managed to rise up about four feet. Just as he let go, she said, "Now stop," knowing that he would be a good distance up by the time he stopped, "and curl your wings. It will act like a parachute."

This he did, and descended, but it was still a landing with an impact. Ahiru then said, "If it feels like you are dropping too fast, flap a couple of times. You'll get the feel for it."

He gave it a couple more tries, and figured out how to stay somewhat in control. He knew practice would help. Ahiru then said, "Now, to actually fly, you have to jump and flap, but do it as if you were swimming the butterfly. To glide, just hold your wings out straight. The air will hold up your wings, so your wings won't get tired. And then…"

But before she could finish, Joe gave it a go. "Wait!" said Ahiru, but he was already airborne. Things went well enough, until he headed for a wall. Just before he hit it, Freya put her hands out and caught him. "I think there was something else she was trying to tell you."

"Let me guess," said Joe, "It had something to do with steering, right?"

The two girls laughed as Freya let him perch on his hand. "Okay, this is how you turn: point the left wing down to go left, and twist the right wing the other way. Right turns are the opposite. Diving is tilting both wings up, and swooping up is tilting down."

The lesson continued on, and they kept Joe at it until he seemed to have the knack for it. He then began to enjoy flying, and Ahiru was amused as she heard him laugh and have a good time with it. As a test, they took him outside to deal with a little breeze. At first, the wind got the better of him, but he then figured out how aerodynamic he really was, and then began to turn the wind to his favor. He was then beginning to perform tricks and turns. He now truly learned what it meant to be "free as a bird."

While all this was going on, Drosselmyer was talking with the five warlocks: Adolph, Helmut, Heinrich, Felix, and Rolf. Felix, (who was their leader,) demanded, "Who are you, and why have you brought us here?"

"Because I can," said Drosselmyer, and he chuckled. Felix was not amused. "This is not time for jokes, you old goat!" he thundered.

"Temper, temper," said Drosselmyer, "I have great hopes for you!"

"This better not be some trick, or…" said Adolph.

"Worry not, dear friend," said Drosselmyer, all gushingly, "I only want to aid you in your work."

"What's in it for you if we let you?" said Heinrich.

"Nothing, but the enjoyment of seeing a good tragedy played out," said Drosselmyer, and he mused over Heinrich's forward thinking.

"I think he's more twisted than we are," said Rolf, "Which is all the more delicious," said Helmut.

He then turned his attention to Drosselmyer, and said, "How shall this be done?"

"It's so simple," said Drosselmyer, "Just watch the cogs, and when you see something you like, just tell me, and I shall send you."

What he did not want to tell them was that they were inside the mechanics of the story itself, and all they had to do was subdue Drosselmyer, and real misery would start. Tragedy was fine as long as he did not end up on the wrong end of the deal. However, none of this escaped a pair of curious eyes and ears, and now she wanted to find out what it was all about. She sauntered up to Felix and said, "What are you watching-zura?"

Felix nearly came out of his skin when Uzzura came up from behind. "Away, child," he threatened, "You are a nuisance!"

Uzzura started pounding on her drum, and shouted, "I wanna know-zura!"

"GO AWAY!" he shouted, and shoved her aside. Uzzura was upset at this mean person, but knew better than to press it. She instead listened to the comments, and then realized that these were bad people. Worse, they wanted to do bad things to her old friends. Uzzura was unlike any of Drosselmyer's puppets, for this one possessed a free will, and a heart of her own. She was naïve in many things, but she was on the ball enough to know trouble when she saw it. She had remembered how Drosselmyer took trips into the other world, and figured that this is what she needed to do. Thus, when no one was looking, she snuck to one of the clocks, took it, and sent it back once she arrived. Now she went to seek her friends, who had taught her all about lovey-dovey!


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter VI

Music: Waltz of the Flowers

Sunday arose with a bright sun, and preparation for Ahiru to return to school was in full swing. All seemed like it would be an ordinary day, or at least as ordinary as expected. Joe surprised Ahiru awake when he landed on her window sill, found it cracked open, and started to thunder "Nessun Dorma." "Quack!" she screamed, (as old habits die hard,) and she literally jumped straight out of bed. She wheeled around and glared at Joe as he said, "Good morning, Sunshine."

"Well that was rather rude!" she snapped.

"Hey," he said, "The prince told me to wake you: breakfast is ready."

"Yeah," she said, angrily, "and I am a girl now, and I've always wondered what parrot tasted like!"

She then began to move quickly towards the window, as Joe said rapidly; "Welllookatthetimegottago!" and he swiftly flew away. She was suddenly sorry she had taught him how to fly. She put on Rue's old dress and went to breakfast.

Everyone was settled in, and were about to start breakfast, when the sound of a loud snare drum cracked right behind Ahiru, and a childlike voice thundered behind it, saying, "Hi, ducky-lucky-zura!"

"Quack!" said Ahiru, and she fell out of her chair. When her vision cleared, she was looking right into the face of Uzzura. "You didn't change-zura!"

Everyone tried to stifle it, but then they all let out a big belly laugh. Ahiru pulled herself up to the table level, and she said, "How long has she been here? Furthermore, how long have you known!"

"What's so funny-zura?" shouted Uzzura.

"You!" said Ahiru, retaking her seat.

Uzzura though for a minute, and then started to march around, beating her drum, singing, "Funny, funny, zura funny!"

Fakir snatched her up, but his hand on her mouth, and grabbed the sticks, saying, "That's quite enough from you!"

"Where did she come from?" asked Ahiru.

"We're not sure ourselves,' said Siegfried.

Uzzura seemed to be trying to mumble something from underneath the hand of Fakir, and when he would not relent, she bit his hand. He screamed in pain as Uzzura shouted, "Bad people want to hurt ducky-zura! Want to help-zura!"

Rue then took a serious note, and said, "What bad people?"

Uzzura then began to tell, in her own childlike, unique was, how Drosselmyer had caused her to come to him when things had bone back to normal, used her to spy, and tried to treat her as a mindless robot he had created and controlled. She then told of how these five bad people came in, and how they were watching the world. She did not know why, and she tried to ask, she was roughly tossed aside. "Naughty, naughty-zura!" she yelled. Rue patter her on the head, and said, "Yes, they are very naughty!"

Freya, in her own sweet way, said, "Don't worry, little blossom, we'll make sure they never are naughty again."

Quickly, her attention shifted to the cockatoo on the perch, munching away on some sunflower seeds. Joe caught the sense someone was watching him, and chewed slowly. "Pretty white birdie-zura!" she cried, and wanted to take a closer look at it. Joe began to climb to his highest perch, not sure what to think. Quickly, Ahiru came over and said, "Careful! You have to be gentle."

"Oh," she said, and Joe said, "Yeah, be careful with the bird."

"What is it-zura?" asked Uzzura.

"It's a cockatoo," said Siegfried, "It's a kind of parrot."

Uzzura thought for a moment, and then said, "What's a parrot-zura?"

"It is a bird that can talk and mimic things," said Freya.

"Wow!" said Uzzura, "a talkie-birdie-zura!"

Joe, by this point, had retreated to his highest point, as far back on the perch as he could go without having to fly away. Uzzura then said, 'Talk birdie-zura!"

"So," said Joe, very uneasy, "What do you think Bayern-Munich's chances are this year?"

"I dunno-zura," said Uzzura. She thought for another moment, and then said, "Is he a birdie like ducky-zura?"

"Well, in a sense…" said Ahiru, but just as Uzzura heard that, she was across the table like a shot, and Fakir found it hard to stifle a laugh, as he knew what was coming. Because of the comedic value, there was no way that eh was about to stop her! Before anyone could react, she made a beeline for the pitcher of water, and was already heading for Joe. "Hey, kid, what are you…" and stopped, realizing one second too late what was coming. Once second before the tsunami hit, one would have heard him utter, "This is gonna hurt!"

Joe has all he could do to hold on to his perch, and gripped it long enough to only be knocked to its base. You could hear the snuffs as he cleared his nostrils. He shook off the water violently as Uzzura watched closely, saying, "Nothing happened-zura!"

"WHAT WAS THAT ALL ABOUT!" thundered Joe, but everyone was in stitches by this point. "Sure," he said, "Everyone laugh at the bird!"

Ahiru said, "I'm sorry Joe," wiping away a few tears, "I'll explain later!"

Later on that day, they all went to the dorms to move in. As was hoped, because of the nature of the tale, no one remembered Joe as a human, and no one remembered the bird. Ironically, Ahiru's and Rue's old rooms were still open, and they were given those very rooms respectively. Because Freya seemed to have a soothing effect on Uzzura, she was given her care. Joe was roomed with Fakir and Siegfried. At the cross point between the two dorms, Freya stroked Joe's crest, and said, "I can't stand this, baby. We'll try to get you back to normal as soon as we can."

"I love you so much," said Joe, "I'll keep singing for you!"

She picked him up and hugged him, and then sent him along with Fakir. As Ahiru was settling in, Pique and Lillie both showed up, and said, "Wow, a real princess!"

Pique then said, "Can we help you settle in?"

"Sure," said Ahiru, "I'd love the company."

"The poor dear," said Lillie, "So used to living in a palace, and now she stuck in a stuffy old dorm room! It seems so much like a fairy tale beginning."

Ahiru chuckled, and said, "It's okay—at least this way, I get to know everyone better."

"Such a princess of the people," said Pique, "and you have such poise."

The two had aged a year, and matured a touch, yet they still had their old personalities. However, because of her slightly more advanced age, gain in maturity, and because they though her to be a princess, they approached her differently. No longer was the awkward duck of a girl standing before them, but a grounded, settled young woman, who seemed now more of an older sister to them than a peer. Just to test the waters, Ahiru said, "Interesting room: I wonder why the bunk is up there in the loft?"

"I'm really not sure," said Lillie, "It's been so long since someone has been in here."

That was what Ahiru was probing for, and then she asked, "Yes, who was in here before?"

"It's so funny," said Pique, "We all know someone had been in here, but no one can remember just how. We know she liked birds," and then she pointed to the bowl and the empty bag of seeds. Ahiru climbed the ladder to the bed, and saw the old duck pillow she had had, but both had an old, mildew-like smell. As soon as Lillie saw that, she ran off, and then came back with a can of disinfectant/deodorant. Ahiru took it as Lillie said, "We have to do this every year, because these buildings are so old."

However, it seemed everything had been somewhat modernized. In the old story, everything seemed like a renaissance mixed with the modern world kind of setting. Now, that was changed when the old spell had been broken. She was surprised to see that things remained modern despite the start of a new story. Later, she would have to see if they were all trapped as before. If so, the parameters extended past the town, considering the free movement about the principality. Ahiru decided to test some more, and said, "It's odd you can't remember who lived in here. Can you remember anything?"

"It's very fuzzy," said Pique, "and everyone has different ideas. Some say she was a nice person, others say that she was clumsy; others say that she was always late for class. Lillie seems to think she's some great girl of mysterious tragedy!"

"Do not!" Lillie snuffed back.

Pique then said, "But, anyways, it's your room now, so if you wan to paint or redecorate, or anything, just let us know."

"Thank you," she said, as they finished putting things together, and they took their leaves. Ahiru wondered about the room, seeing things in there as if she had just left. In fact, she insured that there were certain draws and cracks of the closet that the girls did not enter, and she then opened them. Sure enough, there were her old dance clothes and casual wear. They were a bit moth-eaten, and they smelled a bit. Yet, they were right where she had left them. It began to sink into her that she had quite been forgotten. It has been as if she never existed, and that hurt. It was then she saw the old lamp from an early adventure. It had been alone and forgotten, then found new life with Ahiru, and then had been abruptly abandoned again. She walked up, trimmed the wick, and lit it, saying, "I'm so sorry for leaving. I promise that this time, you will not be forgotten."

As she stared at the lamp, she then realized something. Yes, she had been forgotten. However, like the lamp, she now had a new life, and another chance. She would do all she could to not be forgotten again.

That night, her dreams were in a swirl. She was dreaming of the royal wedding upcoming, and she dreamed that she was the maid of honor, and Fakir was the best man. It was a beautiful wedding, full of joy, pomp, and beauty. However, when they came to the part where the groom kissed the bride, suddenly, it was not Rue's face, it was her's! Fakir had taken the place of the prince as he lifted the veil, and they prepared to kiss!

"Quack!" she screamed, as she bolted awake, and bumped her head on the awning. "Now what was that all about?" she thought, and then she heard tapping on the window. It was Joe. She opened it up, and he said, "Fakir told me that you used to have trouble waking up on time, so he sent me to wake you!"

"Thank you, Joe," she said, "So, what are you doing today?"

"Siegfried told me to hang out with him today," answered Joe, "he said he could convince Frau Von Trapp to let me stay. All I had to do was sing."

They began to hear movements in the hall of the girls going to and fro from the shower room, preparing for class. Ahiru went to join them, and said, "Sing something now."

As she went into the hall, all remarked about the bird on her shoulder. The girls started to chatter, "Isn't that Joe the Cockatoo everyone's been talking about?"

"What's he doing here?"

"I hear he's free, he just likes people."

"Does he have to be in here?"

"He's only a bird, what harm is there?"

With that, he said, "Thank you for the compliments, and now, I shall sing," and he started in on "Good Morning, Starshine."

Suddenly, the morning began to move along, and all seemed like it was going to be a fine day. Joe, however, behaved himself, and stayed out of the private areas. Freya would never forgive him if he was gawking at the wrong things. All the girls loved the singing, and remarked on how intelligent a bird he was, and how he could have gone into the opera had he been human. Joe winced, but bit his tongue. As they exited, he saw some of the girls from the music division, and flew over to them. He said, "Let's sing 'Mama Mia!'" and they all broke into a ccapella harmonies, highly impressing some of the boys as they emerged. Soon, some of the male singers joined in, and tat that, one of the girls said, "Oh, please, your highness, can we have Joe with us today? Teacher would love him!"

Joe shrugged, and said, "What can I say? I have a fan club."

Siegfried laughed and said, "Well, I guess it works out better that way."

He then looked at Joe, and said sarcastically, "Who am I to separate you from your 'adoring fans!'"

Frau Von Trapp was all giddy that she now had two members of royalty in her class, and she knew this would look good on her class, and she knew this would also look good on her evaluations. She then said, "Now, I do apologize, your highness, if this seems to question your abilities, but we'll have to do an aptitude test."

She then looked at her feet, and said, "Oh dear, your not _en Pointe_ yet? Tisk, tisk! This must be corrected. Do you have any have any open class periods, your highness?"

"I have one after the classroom phase of this class, in fact," said Ahiru.

"Excellent," said Von Trapp, "Then, if you don't mind, I would like to have you one-on-one, and get you _en Pointe_ as soon as we can."

Ahiru was ecstatic! She could wear toe shoes now, just like Tutu! Yes, she was clearly different than Mr. Katt. She often wondered if he would have been this kind. Ahiru said, "I would love it!"

"Good," she said, "We start later today. Now, what is the music to which you wish to dance?"

"Waltz of the Flowers," said Ahiru.

The music started, and despite being demi-point, she was able to show her skill with great confidence. Ahiru remembered how she had often practiced as a duck with Fakir, and she was more able to dance and learn, considering all the pressures of classes were no longer an issue. Moreover, Fakir had shown himself a patient teacher, helping her to perfect her art, even if she was only a duck. This had resulted in far more confidence in her ability, and it showed. Von Trapp said, "It amazes me that you have not yet gone _en Pointe_ yet. I would set you in advanced class, but I would like to get you used to toe shoes first. However, with your already refined skill, and solidity in the basics, you'll be there in no time."

She then turned her attention to the class, and said, "Ladies and gentlemen, this is a prime example of how practice is so important. She has never gone _en Pointe_, and yet she dances with that kind of skill, as one who had been doing so for years. Also, to you younger girls, this is why I am not in such a hurry to get you _en Pointe_. You have to be strong enough in your legs, and in your skills. If you are skilled in the basics, you shall also do well, and be more able to adapt, in toe shoes faster. Thank you, your highness."

Everyone applauded, and Ahiru took it in stride, but inwardly, she was in ecstasy. Only a year ago, she could barely stay out of the probationary class, and now, she was going _en Pointe_! Rue then said to her, "Shows what happens when you learn to love yourself, doesn't it?" and she gave her a sisterly squeeze.

Then Frau Von Trapp said, "Okay, today is a pas de deux class. This is where confidence really comes into play. There is confidence that has to be built both ways, because this is the hardest kind of dancing ballet has to offer. The gentleman must build confidence in the young lady, that she would know that he shall keep her balanced and that he shall not drop her. However, she had to give the young man confidence that she will do nothing to cause him to get hurt, namely, his back. That is where most of the stress will fall when he lifts you, and you must be sure to execute properly and avoid over turns, hard twisting, or gyrations could cause him to get hurt. It could hurt him for weeks, and may end up ruining his whole career. It would not take much to throw his back out, so we all have to be conscious of theses things. Therefore, I would not expect perfection. I would rather, at first, you build confidence in one another first, and then we shall refine it. Partners everyone!"

However, Ahiru did not have a partner, and Fakir was odd man out. Frau Von Trapp said, "I hope you would not mind working with Fakir, your highness."

"No," she said, "He is a loyal, hard working knight, and I would feel safe."

"Excellent," she said, "Then, let us begin."

As things progressed, things became easier and easier. At one time, Ahiru knew that working with Fakir would have been difficult. Yet now, it flowed smoothly, considering how much work that they had already done together. Still, it could have never been like this! As they worked, their hearts were racing, and not just form the exertion. It was hard for them not to look each other in the eyes. They did not know how to describe how they felt, but they knew they did not want it to stop. Frau Von Trapp could not believe how much passion the two were showing, but she was not about to stop it either! Could this be what they had been missing?

Meanwhile, Drosselmyer was furious. Uzzura was nowhere to be found, and he could only assume that she must have snuck back and warned the others. That would make things quite difficult. The warlocks were assessing targets, and he did not want to disturb them with this news, lest they act too quickly, and bring the tragedy to too swift an end. The one thing he was relieved about was that Tutu was nowhere around. If she had reemerged, this may have been over before it started. Then Helmut said, "Ah, I think I have my first victim!"

He referred to a girl who had watched Hermia the year before graduate with honors, and she was jealous of Hermia's skill. Worse, the Elki Troupe was soon to tour again, and Hermia was going to try out. She felt it should have been her. He said to Drosselmyer, "Grant me access to that one! She's perfect!"

Drosselmyer glowed in the moment, and said to himself, "And just what are you going to do now to stop me, little duck?"


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter VII

_Music: Symphonie Fantastique—Dream of the Witch's Sabbath_

Hermia had been fervent with her practice since she graduated. She knew that the Elki Troupe would be through in a week's time, and she wanted to be ready. She stood a good chance of being able to join the troop, with Lysander willing to help with the set work, putting his art to good use while pursuing his fiancé. She had often been permitted use of the dance hall after hours so that she could hone her abilities, with Frau Von Trapp putting in some time to help her gain her goals. Often, Von Trapp invited her to be a student teacher during the day, that she might aid the younger students in aiming for high goals, and inspire them. Many companies would not take a dancer that was as tall as she, but her skill help override a lot of bias, and she stood a good chance with the Elki Troupe. However, there was one girl that did not seem to agree. Mausi was only one year behind her, and was near graduation herself. However, she thought that Hermia, who she only saw as a gangly girl with no real beauty because of her height, did not deserve the spot. She was just not built right, and she really did not fit the role of a prima. She might be a good corps worker, but she was nothing more than that. However, she kept silent, because everyone else seemed to think that she was the best thing since sliced bread. They said that her personality, attack, care for people, and overall good spirit put much into her dance, and she would make a good prima, and change a lot of bias in the world of ballet. It was Mausi that Helmut was watching intently. If he could cast a spell on her, she might be able to cause mayhem. He might just get two birds with one stone, in that, she could take care of this Hermia, and maybe, cause her to become so depressed in the act that she might take her own life. Yet, her behavior was also not unnoticed by her peers and her teachers. It was certain that her dance was being affected by her jealousy, and in fact was hurting her chances at a future rather than aid them. Freya definitely paid attention to this, and took note to tell the others that there may be trouble.

Ballet class had ended for the day, and all the students were heading for lunch. Joe flew from the music hall to join Freya. He may be a cockatoo, but that did not mean that he could not be near her. He landed on her shoulder, and they pecked. They could not help but notice the conversation brewing. Ahiru, Lillie, and Pique had formed a friendship, but not like before. It seemed the "princess" had become a peer leader amongst the girls, especially with the other two. They were together so much that people got to calling them the Terrible Trio, (and not for a bad reason.) They were hot in conversation with Mausi, who seemed like she was not in the mood to talk. Pique was saying, "C'mon, Mausi, you just have to focus! You'll get that series of steps!"

"Oh, the poor thing," said Lillie, "a promising ballerina, cut down in her prime. Don't worry, there are plenty of people in mediocrity to keep you company. At least you won't be alone!"

"Now, now, Lillie," said Ahiru, "We need to be a bit more positive."

"But what fun is that," she asked, "You can't console people when they're happy!"

"Is that all you think about?" asked Pique.

"Well, someone has to console the sad masses," she said, "I know that I can be the best."

"Mausi," said Ahiru, "You can't lose focus. You have to look at what you need to get done. Lack of concentration hurt me for years, but now…"

"Don't give me that," snapped Mausi, "You're a princess. My apologies, but, how could you have ever known what it means to compete against other dancers. It doesn't matter if this fails for you; you just go back to your palace. I have noting if this falls through."

"Mausi, I think there's more there than you're letting on," said Ahiru.

"That's it, your highness," said Lillie, "Dig deep and get at the root of the depression! To think, I get to console her when she hits rock bottom. It's so sweet, I can't stand it."

Ignoring her, Pique continued, "Honestly, I just think you're bothered when Hermia helps out. I've noticed that you seem to lose the most focus when she's around."

"That's true," said Ahiru, "and, when I see that she really wants to help you, you shy away. Why?"

Mausi's face went pale, and then went flush, as she said, "You don't know anything! How could you know how I feel!" and she stomped off. "Yep," said Pique, "I think you hit a soft spot there, your highness!"

Joe whispered to Freya, and said, "Wow! Who piddled on her Post Toasties?"

"It's been obvious to me, baby," said Freya, "that she is jealous of Hermia. She was such a good student last year, and she deserves her shot at the Elki Troupe. She became so much better when she finally sought love for herself, rather than try to solve the problems of others, especially when she and Lysander hooked up. Mausi wants to do this too, but she feels that she is not as good a dancer, and is jealous of what Hermia has accomplished. I must tell Duck about this."

She called Ahiru, (Duck,) over, and said, "Duck, I think that we may have to watch her."

"How so?" asked Ahiru.

"If the warlocks were going to act, she would be a good target," said Freya, "Jealousy is brimming out of her, and I don't know what she would do if pushed in the right way."

"Well," said Joe, "She seems to be heading towards the flower garden. Maybe this would be a good time to water them."

"I agree," said Ahiru, "and I'll come along. I'll let you two talk while a watch her reaction."

When they got to the garden, Mausi was sitting staring at the flowers as Freya fetched the watering can. She began to dance and water as she prayed for her flowers. She looked at Mausi, and said, "Aren't they pretty?"

Mausi calmed a bit and said, "Yeah I guess so."

"I love this place," Freya said, "because, when I am sad, they make me feel so happy. They're so colorful, and fragrant."

"Makes me feel good," said Joe, as he began to break into the Flower Song from _Carmen_, and Freya began to dance. All the while, Ahiru sat at a distance, watching the whole thing. She was holding the smooth diamond shard, rolling it back and forth between her hands, pondering the scene. She then heard Adelheid's voice, which said, "Put the stone up to your eye, and look at Mausi."

She did, and she saw her aura. Adelheid then said, "That aura you see is jealousy. That could be trouble."

As she observed, she heard Freya trying to encourage Mausi. "You are such a great dancer," said Freya, "you do not have to be better than anyone. Be yourself."

Mausi was coming around, but then it happened. As Ahiru watched, she saw a red silhouette of a man come out of nowhere and slip up to her ear. The man seemed to be whispering in her ear, and Mausi said, "I deserve that spot more than her!"

"Oh come now," said Freya, "you still haven't finished school. You have more yet to learn. That's why she's so good. She finished all the way through, and has worked hard. You don't think it all just came to her, do you?"

"No!" snapped Mausi, "She has to be doing something special. It's either that, or they're giving her special favor, because of the way she is."

"Now you're sounding silly," said Freya, still smiling, "Just work hard, and you'll have a chance next year."

"No, I won't!" she popped, "She'll still be there, and I'll always be in Gigantia's shadow."

"Now you just must stop," said Freya, "She was in the Advance Placement class with me last year, and she is not like other tall girls. She is a hard worker, and very graceful."

"You're like all the others!" she said, "I'm gonna try out this year, and I am gonna make it!"

"Honey," she said, "Finish school first, or you may regret it."

Mausi just scowled at her and left. "Well, that worked," said Joe.

However, Ahiru approached, and said, "There was someone with her."

"Was it…" said Freya, and Ahiru cut in and said, "Yes it was," and Adelheid added, "That was the warlock Helmut. He is a danger indeed."

"What can he do?" asked Joe.

"If she allows it, she can allow a place for him in his heart, and then he can act through her."

"Then we must keep a close eye on her," said Freya, "because jealousy can cause the most benevolent to become destructive, and that is scary."

As Mausi made her way, she said, "They could never understand."

"Of course not," said Helmut.

"I wish I could just make all this go away," she said.

"I can help," he said, now weaving his spell on her.

"How?" she said, now in a bit more of a dreamy state, as she began to yield to the spirit.

"Just let me find a lodging place in your heart," he said, "and I shall guide you in what you should do."

By this point, she was under his spell, and she said, dreamily, "Yes, my master, come in," and he entered into her heart. When this happened, her skin paled a bit, and she began to affect an evil demeanor to her face. A wicked grin overtook her, and she said, "Now we'll see who gets in!"

That evening, all the girls began to remark about the change in the demeanor of Mausi. She suddenly wanted to keep to herself, and no amount of convincing could get her to come out and socialize. This did not escape the notice of Ahiru, and she decided that she was not about to let her out of her sight for one instant. The next day, Hermia was to be in class, and Ahiru wondered what was going to happen. As the class progressed, Mausi danced well enough; however, she could not take her eyes off Hermia for one instant. Hermia saw Mausi struggling a bit, and she went over to help. Mausi snarled at her, saying, "Get away from me!"

Hermia was quite taken back by this, not quite knowing what to say. She then said, "Honey, I only want to help you."

"Oh, sure you do," she said sarcastically, "You just want me out of the way!"

"I…I don't understand," said Hermia, now deeply hurt, "I just want you to be a good dancer. You have a great future."

By this point, everyone had stopped, and began to watch the commotion. "No, you just don't want me to take your spot in the Elki Troupe! You know I'm better than you!"

"Why are you talking like this?" asked Hermia, now very confused, "This is just not like you. I'm sure that, when you graduate, the Elki Troupe would love to have you."

Hermia giggled a bit, and said, as friendly as she could, (to try to take the edge off things,) "I would love to have you as my 'partner in crime' in the ballet world!"

"NO!" she shouted, "You'll just make sure I can't get in."

With that, she reached out and slapped Hermia—hard! The smack echoed across the room. Hermia, instead of getting angry, just ran into Frau Von Trapp's office in tears. Even when assaulted, she did not have it in her to retaliate. A thunderous silence filled the room. Frau Von Trapp was livid, "Young lady!" she thundered, "That was inexcusable! I would have you march right in there and apologize to her if I knew you would mean it. You sit one step away from expulsion, young lady! Go to your dorm room and do not leave there, do you understand! Your meal will be delivered to you, and you will stay there until it is decided what is to be done with you!"

"I KNEW IT!" she screamed, "YOU ALL HAVE IT IN FOR ME! YOU ALL HATE ME! I WANT TO DIE!" and she ran out crying.

Ahiru started after her, but Frau Von Trapp said, "Your highness, I'm sorry, but she is to be isolated. I am afraid you will not be able to speak to her until it is decided what should be done. I do apologize."

She then went to the office to console a now sobbing Hermia. This hurt for Ahiru. She did not want to let her out of her sight, but now she was proverbially handcuffed. There was no telling what could happen next. She then had an idea. When Frau Von Trapp emerged, she said, "Ma'am, if it is permissible, I would like to bring to her lunch, if that is okay?"

"You truly are a princess," said Von Trapp, "Despite her evil act; you still want to console her. You must see something good in the girl."

"I think there's something beyond what happened today, and I think I know what. Maybe I can get her past it, and get her to apologize. Would that help?"

Frau Von Trapp thought for a moment, and then said, "Well, she would still have to face a suspension, but, if she were to do so sincerely, we could be lenient on her."

"Thank you," she said, "Then I shall tend to it as soon as class is over."

Mausi was under the spell of an uncontrollable rage, not knowing that it was Helmut that was controlling her thoughts. All this was being watched with delicious relish of the other four and Drosselmyer. "This is so much better, Felix," said Dolph, "We can act, and none can touch us here!"

Drosselmyer just rocked in his chair, watching the tragedy unfold before him, happy for these five. They could provide tragedy for centuries if he liked. The story was sealed and locked away. Once Fakir was out of the way, none could finish the story, and the beautiful story could go on forever, tragic and sweet. They watched as she heard Helmut telling her, "That's right: harbor the hate! Let it grow! Relish in it!"

Mausi began to contemplate what to do next. She knew that Hermia always passed through the flower garden when she left, and she figured no one would be there at that time. That would be the perfect chance to act. "Yes! YES!" said Helmut, "Take her out, and you can have Elki all to yourself."

The most evil and enraged look overcame her, and she headed straight for the flower garden instead of the dorm. When she got there, she looked around, and found an axe. "Oh!" said Helmut, "This IS getting good."

He encouraged her, and told her to fetch it and hide. "Oh, yes," thought Helmut, "There will be blood today."

Ahiru went to the dorm with Mausi's lunch, and knocked on the door. There was no answer. She grabbed the handle, and instead of finding a locked door, it opened easily. "Mausi," she said, "Your lunch is ready."

However, there was no one there. Her books were not even there. Ahiru set down the tray, thinking the worst, not sure what to do. Then she remembered what Adelheid had said: put the stone to her heart, and think about becoming what she could be to aid the situation. Knowing that there was not much else that could be done, she reached into her pocket, and put the stone to her chest. She began to rise off the floor, and glow a golden glow. Golden feathers flew all around her, forming a golden egg, which turned transparent, revealing a crouching ballerina inside. The egg popped like a soap bubble, and the stone formed into a clear, crystal version of the butterfly amulet that Tutu once wore. She spun around, hands above her head, palm over back of hand, feet in the fifth position, and she dropped to the floor in this way. She spun around to look in the mirror, and she saw, with all the joy she could muster, that Princess Tutu had returned—indeed, had been reborn. She was off like a shot, letting her heart guide her straight to the danger.

In the meantime, Hermia was walking alone, still rubbing her face from the sting of the slap, wondering what she had done to hurt the poor girl. About this time, Freya came to the garden to water, hoping to run into Hermia, and console her as best she could. As Hermia got halfway down the walk, Freya stared to approach. This is when Mausi emerged, with a blank expression on her face, dragging the axe behind her. "It ends now," she said blankly, yet with a confidence that reflected the attitude of someone that had made a grave decision. She swung the axe in front of her now in a "port arms" position, and it was obvious to all what was to happen next. Yet, before Hermia could scream, Joe came out of nowhere, landed on Mausi's hand, and bit hard. She screamed a scream that would curdle milk, and shook off the bird. He was fortunate to land in the flowers, thinking, "God, remind me to thank Freya again for her care of the flowers!"

Mausi regained her composure, and brought the axe up again, blocked, and then knocked down Hermia, who had tried to make a run for it. Freya then jumped in front of her, and grabbed the axe handle, trying to wrest it away from Mausi. As they struggled, she did not realize the time that she and Joe had bought for Hermia. She tossed aside Freya, and raised the axe! At that precise moment, everything but the flowers, people, and Joe took on a white outline, and everything else went black. Leaping between the two was Tutu. "Princess Tutu!" said Freya and Hermia, both quite surprised. Vines shot up all around Mausi and secured the axe from her. "You must stop this!" pleaded Tutu, but Mausi answered, "Stay away! The sow is mine!"

"That is not you speaking," said Tutu, as she hoisted Hermia off the ground in a vine bed, and said, "Sleep now, dear Hermia, and all you will remember of this is a bad dream, nothing more."

Hermia drifted off into a deep sleep, and Tutu turned her attention back to Mausi. "You've let in a bad spirit," said Tutu, "Let me set you free!"

At this, she took off the amulet, and began to reach out to Mausi. Helmut realized what she was extending was actually the diamond shard, and he then knew what this Tutu intended. "No!" said Helmut through Mausi's mouth.

"You've caused enough trouble, Helmut," said Tutu.

"How do you know me?" he said.

"I have good sources," said Tutu, "and it is time your evil meddling stopped for good!"

She took the amulet, and touched the chest of Mausi. "NO!" was screamed, and it trailed off as a red arc of light went to the park, and embedded itself in the diamond in the rough. Now Mausi was terrified. Now that she had returned to herself, she remembered what she was about to have done, and was shaking like a leaf. "Why did I do this? I am a bad person!" she said.

Yet, Tutu smiled, and said, "No, you're not!"

With that, the vines sank away, and she did the mime for "dance with me."

Mausi took her hand, and they began to dance. "Mausi," said Tutu, "Your dance is so beautiful! Why are you so jealous?"

"It seems so easy for her!" she said, "I've worked so hard."

"Is that truly how you feel?" asked Tutu, "She has worked hard too, and you know that."

"It just seems like everything has been handed to her," reasoned Mausi.

"Is it that it was handed to her, or is there something else that dwells in your heart?" asked Tutu, "Please, tell me."

She could contain it no longer, and finally began to admit in tears, "I am so sick of trying and falling short. I hurt. I am always sore and tired, and it seems that nothing comes of it!"

"Dearest Mausi," said Tutu, "Nothing worth having ever comes easy. When you work for a goal, there will always be setbacks and failures. Yet, we can only go as far as our last failure. Look at Hermia: I am certain you know of times where she struggled and thought there was no hope. Yet, she persevered, and decided to learn from her mistakes. She also had many friends around her to encourage her, like you have, and she found strength in that. Besides all this, victory is all the more satisfying when it comes at the heels of a lot of hard work and sacrifice. Know also, that such will not end for Hermia. She will then have to work even harder to remain in the troop should she make it. Girls like you that are not her friends will always be coming behind her, trying to take from her all that she fought for. I am sure that, if you do all you can to help her make it, your struggle will not be all that hard, and she may even help you to overcome some roadblocks. When your chance comes, you will have a friend that may help you into the troop, instead of a rival. Give her a chance, and give yourself a chance. Don't try to be someone else—be yourself."

The dance ended, and Tutu was now hugging a sobbing Mausi. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry."

"Go ahead to your room," said Tutu, "There's a hot meal waiting for you. I believe that, if you apologize with all your heart, you may get a second chance."

"Thank you," she said, and with that, she practically danced her way back to the dorm. She then turned to Freya and Joe, curtsied, and left, as the vine bed slowly descended and set Hermia on the ground.

The next day, Mausi stood before the whole class in tears, sincerely apologizing for her behavior, and flat out admitted her jealousy. She also said that she knew she deserved expulsion, and she would accept any punishment that was handed down. However, she also did plea for a chance to make it right, and asked if she could do what she could to help Hermia make it into the Elki Troupe. At this Hermia stepped forward, having no memory of what had happened the day before, save for a bad dream, and said, "Please, do not suspend her. I will accept your kind offer, and maybe we can help each other."

They embraced, and all was forgiven. The class all applauded, and everyone danced at the top of their game that day. Freya was still amazed at the emergence of Princess Tutu, and could not wait to tell Ahiru what she had seen.

Meanwhile, shock and anger filled the realm of Drosselmyer. "What was that?" they all demanded, "What kind of a scheme do you have going, Drosselmyer? Are you going to sacrifice all of us?"

There were only four left now, and the reemergence of Princess Tutu was not expected. "Who was the girl in pink and white?" they demanded.

"That was an unexpected wrinkle in things, gentlemen," said Drosselmyer, "I didn't expect to see her again. I though I quite took care of that."

"Who was that?" demanded Felix.

"That was Princess Tutu," said Drosselmyer.

"Princess Tutu!" exclaimed Heinrich, "What's she doing in this story?"

"I have no idea," he said, "But you must take this into account from now on. You saw how easily she defeated Helmut. You must be cautious from now on, because Tutu is very resourceful."

"Can't you do something about her?" asked Dolph.

"Fakir sealed off the manuscript," said Drosselmyer, "the story is now writing itself. I no longer have control of it. All I can do now is provide you safe haven here, and advice. Pick your targets well, gentlemen. It was my intention that things could go so that you could do this forever. Tutu will try to bring this tale to an end if you do not stop her. Be careful, gentlemen, she is trouble."

At that, they went back to their observing, hoping to be more careful in all that they did. They also wondered how it could be possible to confront Tutu directly, and put an end to her.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter VIII

_Music: Funeral March of the Marionettes/Bach—Unaccompanied Cello Suite_ _1, Movement One_

A week had passed, and Lillie was a bit disappointed that she did not have the chance to console Mausi. She figured that she would be suspended for a time, and she could do all she could to console her. However, Lillie's idea of consoling was telling the consoled that life was hopeless, and they needed to embrace it—not much consolation there! However, she looked for every opportunity to do this kind of thing. Her latest chance came during an academic class. A notable student, who always scored well in his grades, had the odd thing happen to him, in that, he completely forgot to bring a completed assignment to class. He was permitted to retrieve the assignment, but would still be docked points for having it late. He did not figure that it was such a bad thing, because he knew that he could make up for it in other ways, and he knew no one was perfect. However, to Lillie's odd sense of thinking, it was the start of a downward spiral into oblivion, and she needed to comfort the poor lad. Yet, when she approached the boy, the boy looked at her oddly. "What are you going on about?" he asked, "I just got a slightly lower grade than normal. It's no big deal. I'll just be more careful next time."

"Oh, such bravery in adversity," she said, gushing over the whole thing, "Willing to go on despite the inevitable trail of disaster. It's so adorable!"

"For the ninth time," he snapped, "There is no disaster! I'm fine!" and he stomped off.

"How rude," she said, "How could he be so willing to throw away such a fine moment as this?"

Pique and Ahiru, observing the whole thing, came over to get her away from there before any real problems started."

"After all these years," said Pique, "I would have thought that you'd outgrow this…thing."

"It's just not healthy to think like that," said Ahiru.

"How can it not be healthy to care about people?" protested Lillie.

"That's not what I mean at all," said Ahiru, "I mean, you are always so fatalistic."

"You lie!" said Lillie.

"Hey, easy," said Pique, "Don't forget who you are talking to here!"

"It's okay," said Ahiru, "While we are in class, I'm just like the rest of you. I have to pass the same courses, stay in the same dorm; I get no privileges, so it's okay."

"Are you saying that I shouldn't care?" asked Lillie, now genuinely concerned.

"Not at all," said Ahiru, "it's just, well, you shouldn't hope things go wrong, just _so_ you can console people."

"But if things don't go wrong," said Lillie, now sounding a little sad, "how can I console people."

"You think weird," said Pique, "but you do care…I guess…and I guess that's why we love you so much."

Lillie hung her head, sad that no one could understand where she was coming from. They all left the class, but there were things afoot.

Heinrich had been watching her, and said to himself, "Hmm…she wants to console people, and she feels that things have to go bad for that. I can work with that."

He then said, "Drosselmyer, the blonde: I want her."

"Most certainly, my friend," said Drosselmyer, and gave him pass to leave. However, Felix said, "Watch yourself. We know this Tutu is lurking about, and you cannot be as careless as Helmut was."

As he acknowledged this, he made his way to the academy. By this point, Lillie was in her room, and she had a photo album out. She was looking at some old pictures, and she was looking at her grandmother. She was remembering all kinds of good times when she was younger. Then she remembered when she left this world. Before, grandmother was always there when she needed a shoulder, she scraped her knee, had a bad dream at her grandmother's house, and other things. Grandmother was always there. Now she was gone. As she pondered this, a presence entered the room. She felt like someone was watching her, but she did not know what or how. She said, "I must be able to console people."

A voice spoke to her, very seductively. It was empowered as such that she spoke to it, not questioning why she was hearing a strange male voice out of nowhere. "That is always a noble thing," he said.

"But not enough happens," she said, "How can I console people this way?"

"Why are you just waiting?" the man asked, "You won't get chances that way."

"What do I do," she asked, now falling under his spell.

"Give me place in your heart, and I will tell you what to do," it said.

"What shall you do?" she said, now trapped by his seductive power.

"I shall help you get as many people to console as possible,"

"You can do this?" she said.

"Give me place," he answered.

Now staring at the wall blankly, she said, "I am yours.'

With that, he entered her heart, and there was a change. She smiled an almost evil grin. When that happened, her photo album fell to the floor, and got kicked under her bed.

At supper, the gang met, talking about events. Freya said, "It was incredible! Mausi was getting ready to do something horrific, and Princess Tutu came out of nowhere and saved the day."

Rue, Siegfried, and Fakir all froze and stared at Ahiru. Siegfried smiled, and said, "That is wonderful! How did you do it, Duck?"

"It wasn't me," she said, "I just did what Adelheid said to do, and then it happened."

"Was this what you hoped for?" asked Fakir.

"All I did was just ask to become someone that could help resolve the issue," said Ahiru, "I guess Tutu was on my heart."

"I didn't think that was possible," said Rue, "I mean, the old story was over, and she was a part of that. None of us are quite what we were. I mean, Siegfried is still Siegfried, but he was that before the story, and he was merely restored."

"In this world of fantasy that Drosselmyer created," said Fakir, "anything is possible."

"There something else to consider," said Siegfried, "Since this is a Drosselmyer story we are trying to close out, and because nothing happened the way that he intended, we have essentially allowed for her return. Besides all that, since you sealed away the tale until this is resolved, we are writing part of the story, in a sense. We know what is going on, and therefore, we can introduce whatever we need."

"Wait a minute," said Joe, "You said 'partially writing,' what do you mean by that?"

"I think he means that Drosselmyer has his hand as well with the warlocks," said Freya.

"In other words," said Joe, "because we were given the freedom to choose how this thing goes, we also have to extend it to Drosselmyer in order to have it."

"That's about the size of it," said Fakir.

"It's actually better this way," said Ahiru.

"I have to concur," said Rue, "It is better to confront him on even ground, rather than let him call all the shots, like last time."

"There is something else to consider," said Siegfried, "How did you bring Mausi around?"

"Well, I touched her with the diamond shard," said Ahiru, "which had converted itself into an amulet like the one before, except this one was crystal clear."

"He must not have been expecting it," said Joe, "just like he wasn't expecting me to bite her hand and delay things."

"Then that means the others, if they seek to act, are going to be more careful," said Fakir, "So be ready for evasive tactics."

"You sound like this is all up to me," said Ahiru.

"You are the only one that can be Tutu," said Rue, "and you have the shard. However, we all can be your eyes and ears. Thus, you have to be ready to act whenever it is time."

Ahiru looked down, but not in a depressed way. She was more lost in thought than anything else. She then said, "Then, you realize, for the first time in my life, I hold my own fate in my hand. It feels strange."

"I don't follow," said Freya.

"In the past," she said, "because of the way the old story went, the only thing that I was certain of was my own feelings. Those were things that Drosselmyer could not control. Now, the only thing I could not control was becoming a girl again. Yet, I now can call my own shots. I guess I never knew what it was like to have all this freedom of choice until now."

"You had it as a duck," said Fakir, confused.

"Yes, and no," she answered, "I mean, I did, and you never kept me captive. Yet, what kind of a life did I have as an intelligent duck outside of being with you, Fakir? There are other things that…" and she stopped herself short, knowing what she was about to say, yet she was not sure that it was time to say anything at all. She knew it would come later, but not now. She then said, "There are other things. I guess the bottom line is, for the first time, if I _had_ wanted to be Tutu again, it was because I wanted to, not because I had to, or because it was forced on me. That feels good!"

"Good," said Siegfried, "Then we must keep our vigil. There is no telling when they will strike next. If one of them was defeated, we have to assume that he wound up in the diamond. That leaves four, not counting Drosselmyer. Thus, they will be cleverer. They may even try to hide in plain sight, so be ready for anything."

"Um…could you be just a bit vaguer, your highness?" asked Joe, sarcastically.

Later on that evening, one of the girls learning point put her shoes outside to dry. It had been a hard class that day, and she wanted to air them out. Lillie saw them, and began to ponder…

The next day, she went outside to retrieve her shoes, and they were not there. She knew the school had issued them, and she had no money until the next day to replace them. Thus, she knew she was going to be in trouble. She asked others her size if they had a spare pair, but none did. She then had to suck it up, and go to class, risking a bad grade for the day. None of this escaped the gaze of Lillie. When they went to class, Frau Von Trapp was quite angry. "I cannot believe that you would be so careless," she said, "Now, just how are you going to participate? You know how much a new pair will cost."

"But, I won't have the money for that until tomorrow," she said, beginning to tear up.

"I'm sorry, dear," said Von Trapp, "but you are just going to have to watch today. Of course, that means you will get a D- today."

"No!" she begged, "I've been doing well all semester so far."

"I'm sorry, but you know the rules: no participation, no good grade," said Von Trapp, "I am disappointed in you. You are a better student than this."

She went over to the chairs at the side of the room, and tried to keep her weeping quiet so that she did not interrupt the class, and get into further trouble. As they did practice, however, Ahiru felt much empathy for her, because she knew what that felt like. However, Lillie watched with relish and keen interest. She knew that she could now console the poor dear. She could not wait for the end of class. Even though the toe shoes sat at the bottom of the river, and she knew why, it did not matter, just as long as she got to do what she loved. After the class, Lillie came up and tried to console her in her odd way, but all it did was make matters worse. Lillie could not understand what was going on, and it only made her angry.

Later on, at lunch, Lillie spied a student go to fetch something, and saw that he had left his book bag. She went up, and realized that it contained a report that was due next period. When no one was looking, she swiped it, concealed it, and headed for the lavatory. Once inside, she looked around, and tore up the report into little pieces. Later in that class, the teacher called for the reports, and the boy she had stolen it from looked frantically for the report. The teacher looked over his half glasses and said, "Something wrong, Herr Gruber?"

"My report!" he said, "I had it in my book bag. I could have sworn it was in here!"

"Are you saying that you don't have it?" asked the teacher.

"That's not it at all!" he said, "I made sure that I put it in here. I know how important this is."

"You're right, it is important," said the teacher, "and it is inexcusable. You know what I said would happen if you failed to turn in an assignment."

"But sir," he said, "It's done, and it's on my computer. It would only take me a bit to retrieve it."

"Then you had better listen, young man!" said the teacher, "You will have a late mark on the paper, but you have 24 hours to turn it in. Fail to do so, and you are expelled, do you hear me, young man?"

He sunk back into his chair, pale as a sheet, and said quietly, "Yes sir."

Lillie was on cloud 9. She knew that he needed a shoulder to cry on now. After the class, she said, "Oh you poor thing: on the edge of oblivion, nothing but obscurity ahead."

He looked at her strangely, and said, "What are you talking about?"

"How brave," she said, "so able to keep it in. It's alright, you can let it out. Its better that way, tell Lillie all about it."

"Leave me alone!" he exclaimed, "I don't need that. I need that report in tomorrow, or my goose is cooked," and he walked away, steam pouring out of his ears. Lillie was confused now, and very angry. Heinrich then said, "What are you doing?"

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"You are doing things that can be remedied too quickly," he said, "You have to be more severe."

He began to stir within her, and, at first, she resisted what he was now suggesting. However, because of how she had allowed him in, she began to be seduced by his evil scheme, and now began to ponder more severe ways to act.

Later on, as school was ending for the day, Lillie began to head back to the dorm when she tripped over a loose brick on the pavement. She caught herself, and was going to go on. However, she saw some of the other dance students coming, and she had an evil thought. Then she realized how wrong it was, and tried to resist. However, Heinrich said, "Why are you resisting? Set up the brick."

"Someone would get hurt," she said, "I don't want to hurt anyone."

"Don't resist me, host!" he ordered, and began to take more control of her. He then said, "Did they care how you felt when you tried to console them? Make them understand!"

Now, not quite in control, she set up the brick, and moved on, but not so far away as she could not run up and do her thing. Like clockwork, a girl tripped over it and wrenched her ankle. She screamed in pain and began to cry. Lillie came over as if she were just someone who wanted to see what had happened. Within minutes, infirmary personnel were on the scene tending to her. As the assessed things, the doctor said, "Well, it looks like a sprain, but, give it a week, and you'll be dancing again in no time."

However, Lillie said, "Oh, I'm so sorry! Cut down in the prime of your career!"

"No," she said through the tears, "Don't say that!"

"It's not all that bad," said the doctor.

Lillie ignored this, and said, "Its okay, dear, Lillie is here to be a shoulder for you, even though all is lost."

Instead of making her feel better, she began to cry harder. Everyone began to scowl at her, and then followed up the gurney to the infirmary. She said to herself, "No, it's not supposed to be like this. She's supposed to feel better when someone consoles. What is wrong?"

She began to cry herself, and headed back to the dorm. However, all this was not unobserved. Joe had been sitting in a tree, hoping to see Freya, or surprise Ahiru. At the same time, Uzzura was coming up to find Ducky when she saw it all happen. Joe spotted her, and flew down to her. "Oh!" she said, "It's the talky-birdie-zura."

"Hey kid," said Joe, "Did you see what happened?"

"Why did girl put out the rock-zura?" asked Uzzura.

"Yep," said Joe, "You saw it! We need to find Ahiru."

"Who-zura?" she said.

"Oh, that's right," he said, "Help me find the ducky."

"Oh!" she said in glee, "Ducky-lucky, ducky-lucky," and continued on in her chant as she played her drum.

Meanwhile, Pique, Rue, and Freya were talking about what had happened. They were saddened by what had happened, but they were also confused at Lillie's odd behavior. Of course, her reasoning was always odd; however, she was beyond what she normally was. They did not know what to think. As if she were an answer, they began to hear the beating of a snare drum, and the chanting of a small child. Uzzura turned the corner, and saw the girls, saying, "Oh, there's the ducky-zura!" and ran up to Ahiru. "What are you on about?" asked Ahiru.

"Girl tripped on the rocky-zura," said Uzzura.

"Ah…we know that," said Rue.

"Someone is naughty-zura!" said Uzzura.

"Hold on," said Freya, "Are you saying someone did that deliberately?"

"Girl tripped on the rock-zura," said Uzzura, "She made the rock worse-zura."

Sadly, Pique began to put two and two together, and said, "Wait a minute! The only one who had come from the other way was Lillie."

Ahiru said, "You're not suggesting…?"

Again, as if an answer, Joe swooped in and landed on Freya's shoulder. "You are not going to believe this!"

"Try me," said Rue.

"Me and Uzzura saw the whole thing," he said, "It was Lillie. I don't know what got into her, but she did it."

"I do," thought Ahiru. Ahiru said, "We have to find her and talk some sense into her. We have to find out why she did it."

"I hope so," said Pique, "I'm going to give that girl a piece of my mind!"

"You four see if you cannot corner her in the dorm," said Ahiru, "I'll be along shortly."

Only Pique did not know what that meant, and they swept her along before she could ask any questions. Once she was out of sight, Ahiru changed.

In the dorm, Lillie was heading to her room, when she was met by Pique before she could enter. "What in the name of common sense are you thinking, girl!" she snapped, "We know what you did!"

"What do you mean," said Lillie, as she began to walk away. However, she took only two steps, turned around, and bumped right into Rue. "You are not going anywhere, young lady!" she snapped, "There is someone that wants to speak to you!"

She tried to turn to run, only to be confronted by Freya and Joe. "Why is everyone going crazy?" asked Lillie, but Joe shot back, "We were going to ask you the same thing."

"I didn't do anything," said Lillie.

"A guilty conscience needs no accuser," said Pique, "We didn't even say what you did."

Uzzura did not help matters as she began to walk across the group, hitting her drum, and singing, "Naughty girl, naughty girl: we caught the naughty girl!"

"Leave me alone!" she said, and shoved Pique aside as she ran. She did not get far. Everything went black with white outlines. Tutu was standing in the exit. "Lillie, why are you doing this?" she said. Lillie stood in terror. This did not faze Tutu as she gave the invitation to dance. Heinrich knew what that meant, and he was not going to be caught that easily. She looked about, saw a potted plant, grabbed a handful of dirt, and threw it into Tutu's eyes. She winced in pain as Lillie ran by. However, the voice they heard was not hers, as it said, "You won't find me that easy, ballet brat!" and she ran off.

Rue came up and said, "Are you alright, Tutu?"

"I'm fine," said Tutu, and then turned to the others and said, "My friends, do not be too angry at her: she is not in her right mind."

"You can say that again!" said Pique.

"It's worse than that," said Tutu, "I fear now for her life. There is something I think that has been bothering her for some time, and I must find the root of it. Say nothing to anyone about what happened. If all goes well, I will cause her to make things right to the girl without her getting into trouble."

With that, she pirouetted, and went after Lillie.

Lillie was going out of her mind at this point. She was so angry nothing was going right. Heinrich then began to say, "That's right, no one understands you. Whoever could aside from your grandmother?"

"Grandmamma," she cried, "I need you! I need you so bad!"

"There is a way to see her," he said sinisterly, and began to plant thoughts into her head.

"My life is over," she said, there is no other way.

Blankly, she went up to an ivy ladder that led to the top of the dorm, and started to climb.

"Yes, that's right," said Heinrich excitedly.

"I'm coming soon, Grandmamma," she said, and climbed.

She had gotten to the top of the ladder, and then let go, just in time for the ivy to catch her.

"What?" she thought, as she observed a flowery vine ascend next to her. On top of the vine stood Tutu. "That is not the way to fix it, dear Lillie," she said, "but first, I need to clear your head."

The ivy then restrained her as Tutu took off the amulet and touched her chest. A male voice thundered, "No, you cannot have defeated me."

"You have tormented people long enough," said Tutu, "Back you go."

The same effect as before occurred, and now Lillie sat cradled in the ivy. It then lowered, and set her in her own room, with Tutu following right behind. Inside were the other girls waiting for her. Once inside, Tutu gave the invitation to dance again, and asked everyone to join her. As they danced, Tutu asked, "Why do you desire people to be sad?"

"I don't want anyone to be sad," said Lillie, "I want to console them."

"How is saying that bad shall happen consoling?" asked Tutu.

"But, if bad things don't happen, I cannot console," answered Lillie, "I have to console people."

Tutu thought for a moment, and then asked, "Was there ever anyone that consoled you when you were sad?"

As she said this, a few of the vines reached into the room and pulled out the photo album from under the bed where Lillie had kicked it under Heinrich's influence. Tutu took it, and spun towards Lillie with it. "Grandmamma," said Lillie, "Oh Grandmamma! Why did you leave me? No one ever made me feel loved like you when I was sad," and she began to cry.

Everyone was staring at this point. Lillie never had spoken of such matters before. Lillie then said, "I always sought to console people because of her, because I knew how good it made me feel."

"What happened?" asked Tutu.

"When she died, mama tried to console me, but it wasn't the same. I know mama loves me, but it just wasn't the same."

"Is this why you do what you do?" asked Tutu.

"I thought that, if I could console people as well as her, then I would feel better," said Lillie, "but it was not enough. Not enough things happen, so I have to hope for it. It's the only way. I just must console people!"

"But dear Lillie," said Tutu, as they began to dance some more, "Is there not enough misery in the world for you to be a shoulder to cry on? Consoling people means that you help them to hope. Just because they feel better does not mean that they won't need you again. How many others would love such a caring heart like yours? I think that your Grandmother would love it if she knew just how much she inspired you. Please, help people see the good that can come. Tragedy is never fun for the one undergoing it. You may think someone looks adorable, but…"

"They do not," said Lillie, "I only thought that because I was excited that I could console someone again. I was only thinking of myself, because I want to be consoled, and there is no one."

Before Tutu could answer, Rue said, "That's not true. You have all of us. Holding in your pain all these years for the loss of your Grandmother is not good."

That caught Tutu off guard, but she appreciated it nonetheless. Lillie needed to know that there are others that can give her what she needs, and she did not have to feel alone anymore. Freya said, "You know where I like to be, and if you feel sad, you can come and help me with the flowers. It always cheers me up."

"Hey, what about your best buddy?" said Pique, as she hugged Lillie, "You can always talk to me."

Uzzura sat silent, amazed by the whole thing. She did understand enough that the blonde girl was sad, but they were trying to make her happy. She then ran up and hugged her, saying, "Sad girl: don't be sad anymore-zura."

"See," said Tutu, "Remember this, and always seek to help people see the hope that is in the world, because, it will make you feel even more good when you give hope to others."

With that, she curtsied, and left. When it was over, she was on her knees, clutching the photo album, crying, and saying, "I'm sorry, Grandmamma—I'll do it right from now on. I'll be a good girl."

The next day, the young lady who had lost her toe shoes opened the door to find an envelope taped to the door with enough money to pay for new shoes. Lillie knew that she could not fix the torn up report, but she decided to leave some candy with a note in his bag, saying, "Don't worry, you can pass the class. Just always do your best. Later on that day, she went with the other girls to apologize for what had happened, and she was prepared for whatever punishment would befall her. She went in to her room where she was resting, and said, "I want to apologize for your ankle, because it was my fault, you see…"

However, Rue cut in and said, "She had tripped over it herself, and she forgot to say something, right?"

She looked at Lillie knowingly. It was the truth, in a sense, but not entirely the truth. Lillie continued, and said, "Well, you see, I tried to set the brick…"

"…and she did not do it right," said Freya, as Lillie continued, "You see, I set the brick, and you tripped, so it's my fault."

She turned to the others, and said, "Please, don't—I have to."

She then turned back to the girl, and said, "I did it deliberately, but to get anyone, not specifically you. I was wrong. If you told on me, I deserve it."

The girl said, "But, Lillie, that's not like you. Why?"

She started to cry, and said, "I was stupid! I wanted to console someone so bad, I wasn't thinking right! I was wrong!"

"Yes, you were," said the girl, "and I don't know what could have come over you."

"I do," said Pique, "because she needs help. There are some things in her past that she hasn't gotten over, and she wasn't thinking straight. It has something to do with her family past."

The girl thought for a minute, and then said, "The doctor said that it was not too bad, and I will be back in a few days. I won't say anything on one condition: if you go to the school counselor and seek help, I won't say anything. You must seek that help, because, if you don't, then I know that you did it with malice, and I shall have no mercy. The fact that you fessed up tells me that you are sorry for what you did, and you want to make it right. If you do that, you are making it right, and you've made it right with me."

The girl then smiled, and they hugged. Ahiru watched through the crack in the door, knowing that Lillie could now get the help that she truly needed. Now she knew that Lillie would be a bulwark of strength for others, once she learned to gain strength from her own losses. Uzzura whispered, saying, "Lillie is a good girl now-zura?"

"Very much so," said Ahiru, "very much so."

She took out the diamond shard, looked at it, and said, "Just three more to go, Princess Adelheid, and we can put this to rest forever. Just hang in there."

She then thought, and said, "Oh, and thank you for letting me be Tutu again. I won't let you down."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter IX

_Music: Khachaturian's Saber Dance_

The three remaining warlocks watched with horror. They were getting snatched up quickly, and they began to wonder just how powerful this Tutu was. Drosselmyer was worried for another reason. The tragedy that he was trying to weave was quickly falling apart, and the kids would spoil everything again. Felix then spoke up and said, "Fools, this is getting us nowhere. Can't you see what's happening? Look at that red haired girl! Drosselmyer, who is she?"

He did not dare say. He knew that she was originally the duck that destroyed everything. Through Fakir's power, she was able to project Tutu in an astral form without the pendant, and provide the prince the transport he needed to defeat the Raven and rescue Rue. Despite a broken wing and several broken ribs, she managed to survive, and thwart his plans. Now she was back, she had no weakness as changing into a duck at inconvenient times, and was more mature. His meddling had changed her forever. Worse, because the boy had sealed away the story, he could not write on it, nor manipulate his distant grandson into writing what he wanted. He wondered how a tragedy could be done when everyone was acting with their free will, and apparently, the villains he chose were incompetent. He then figured that this was how Adelheid had trapped them initially, and if it were not for his writing, she would have been free, and then would have had him go up the short ladder and then down the short rope! Drosselmyer then said, "She's…been a thorn in my flesh for some time. Yet, she is not all that powerful. Look there!"

He pointed to her at the door as she watched Lillie make her confession. They then saw the diamond shard in her hand, and Drosselmyer said, "That is the source of her power. If you can take that from her somehow, then there is no more Tutu. She would be powerless to stop you."

Then Dolph said, "How are we going to get it? You know what happens when we touch it."

"Simple," said Rolf, "we get one of them to steal it, and then put it somewhere that she cannot ever find it again!"

They looked all around the school, but could find no one that had a heart to be a thief. They then began to look around the town for someone who could do the job.

Lillie began to see a counselor regularly after what she called her "sick time," and she began to deal with some deep rooted things that had been haunting her for some time. She was surprised how it was that little things could cause one to do some odd things. In the meantime, the relationship between Fakir and Ahiru was beginning to blossom. It was Friday, and the group decided to go out for pizza that night. Even though it was a casual thing, it never failed when Siegfried came along. As soon as they sat down in the fresco dining area, the staff of the pizzeria began to go ape, and made sure everything was to be of the best quality possible. "Well, I tried to keep it low key," said Siegfried, "It never fails!"

"Get used to it, Bubba," said Fakir, "It comes with the territory."

They all ordered, and the conversation was spirited. They knew they had a mission, but they did need a chance to have fun every once in a while. Joe heard some of the music playing, and he recognized the tarantella, so he started to sing it. Now everyone at the restaurant was having a good time. The chef came out with a can of anchovies for Joe, and said, "You're a good birdie, yes? Birdie wants a fishy?

"Nah," said Joe, "Give me a short beer!"

That threw him back a bit. "And a smart mouth birdie, I see," said the chef.

Joe said to him in Italian, "Smarter than you realize pizan!"

He patted Joe on the head, and then figured that he should be minding his own business. Everyone, including Uzzura, sat silent as they watched him go back in, and then they all busted a gut! Freya opened the can and began feeding the fish to Joe as they continued to eat. However, Rue began to notice just how affectionate that Fakir and Duck were getting, and nudged the prince, saying, "Uh, baby, do you see something not so good here?"

"I can't see what you think is…" and then he stopped, seeing what was happening, and then said, "Oh, I see what you mean."

"Don't you think that's a problem?" asked Rue.

Siegfried thought about it, and understood where Rue was going with it. At about this time, a karaoke machine was brought out, and Joe just had to be the first one up. They were quite surprised to see a bird come up and give it a try, but Freya assured them that it would be alright. He then asked for "She's Always a Woman to Me," and dedicated it to the beautiful blonde at table three. However, Fakir and Ahiru began to do a passionate pas de deux to the music. Uzzura then piped up and said, "Oh, they found their lovey-dovey-zura!"

"That's going to be a big problem," said Siegfried.

Uzzura did not understand, and said, "Lovey-dovey is bad-zura?"

"What is she," pointing to Ahiru.

"She's a ducky-zura!" answered Uzzura.

"Does she look like one now?" he asked.

"Oh no!" she said, "She looks like Duck-zura."

"When this is over, what shall she be?" asked the prince.

"A ducky-zura," she answered, and then the lights went on. "Ducky and boy can't be all lovey-dovey-zura."

"Yes," said Rue, "and we have to do something about it."

Rue then turned to Siegfried, and said, "You pull aside Fakir, and I'll talk to Duck. Maybe we can talk some reason into them."

As they danced, there were three boys nearby who had a bad reputation in the neighborhood. They were known for petty theft and vandalism, and they saw the crowd now forming around the fresco dining area of the pizzeria, dancing and singing. Normally this was their chance to do a little work, but something interesting happened to one of them. Rolf entered the picture, and entered the heart of the boy named Irving. Irving then said to his friends, "Say, I think I saw something neat in the jacket of that red haired girl dancing."

"You did," said Edward, "What was it?"

"It looked like a diamond!" said Irving.

"Are you sure?" said Julius.

"It looked large and smooth like an egg," said Irving, "Ed, go get it."

Not thinking twice, he slipped into the crowd, reached into the pocket of the jacket hung round the chair, and snatched the diamond shard before anyone could see what was happening. He then went back and said, "Wow! Look at how big it is?"

"That will get us some money," said Julius.

"No said Irving," we have to get rid of it.

"What do you mean, 'get rid of it?' Are you crazy?" said Edward.

Rolf was stuck. He told them to get it, and now he wants them to throw it away. He thought fast, and then said, "I didn't realize how big it was," he said through Irving, "That would be missed. They would look for us right away, don't you think?"

"Hey, no one saw me," said Edward, "They can't pin it on us."

"You know they'll blame us," said Irving, "Just get rid of it."

Julius thought for a moment, and then said, "Yeah, just give it to me, and I'll take care of it."

"Cool," said Irving, just don't be foolish.

However, Julius had no intention of getting rid of it. He was going to conceal it for a time, and then wait for the right time to hawk it. Meanwhile, Rolf remained inside Irving, because he knew that there could be quite a bit of chaos that he could now cause. He would have him escalate in his crimes, and then would seek to put him in a situation where his life would be at risk.

On the way back to the dorms, they were able to pull the other two aside and talk to them. Rue talked to Ahiru, and said, "Um…Duck…" not knowing how to start, and then said, "So, how's it been going for you as a girl?"

"That's a silly question," said Ahiru, "It's been going a lot better than the last time. I mean, there are no questions, no hang ups. You just know what needs to be done, and then you get it done. I could get used to this!"

"Ah…That's what I wanted to talk to you about," said Rue, "I mean, you do know what is going to happen when this is all over, right?"

"What do you mean?" asked Ahiru.

"Well," said Rue, "Look at Freya and Joe: remember how they were?"

"Oh, of course," said Ahiru, "Who couldn't see that?"

"Well, I mean," said Rue, "Look at Joe: do you think that's good?"

"Of course not," said Ahiru, "He wants to be himself again, I mean, who wouldn't want to be?"

"That's right," said Rue, "Who wouldn't want to be?"

Ahiru locked up, and then realized what Rue was saying, "Oh yeah, that's right. I'm only a girl because of what happened to Joe."

"Look," said Rue, "Its not that I don't like to see you like this, because it is a lot easier to talk to you. Yet, I mean, whether you are like this, or a duck, you are you, right?"

"Well, yes," said Ahiru, now not liking where this was going.

"And even if you have to speak in a sign language again, we can still talk, right?"

"I guess so," said Ahiru, her voice now lowering.

"I want you to understand something very important," said Rue, trying to act like an older sister if she could, "It doesn't matter to me what this outside shell looks like. It's not what I see out here that makes me love you. I love what is up here," and Rue put a finger on her forehead. She continued, "It's the person who lives in here that I like. No matter what you end up, you will always be the one I love, the one that helped save me, the one that gave me the greatest possible chance a girl could ever have. I've come to grips with that. A duck, as Duck, or as Tutu, all three are the same person—you! I will always love you. So, don't feel obligated to stay a girl, because I've seen you happy as all three, and the same personality is in all three. You can be a duck, and still be my friend."

"Thank you," said Ahiru, "I was feeling a little awkward there, because I didn't know what you were trying to say, but I guess it's okay."

She thought for a moment and said, "So, you're saying that I should be careful and not get attached to this, right?"

Rue thought for a moment, and said, "I think you understand where I am coming from. When we leave the stage of a ballet, sometimes it's a little hard to drop character, isn't it."

"Yes, that's true," said Ahiru.

"That's because we get so into it, that we, for a short time, convince ourselves that this is who we are," said Rue, "Yet, it is the best way do to it, because you become more believable. However, no matter how attached we get to a role, we must be able to not get so attached to it that it affects our lives. Think of this as a prolonged ballet. You are portraying a girl right now, but no matter how much you must throw yourself into this role to make it believable, you know that you are going to have to take off the costume at some point. I just want to be sure that you are ready for it."

Ahiru stood silent, knowing what Rue was saying, and she knew that Rue was right; yet, she could not help but think that there was something else to what she was saying. She had to ask, "Is there something else with this that you want to say?"

Rue was busted, and now she had to be as delicate as possible. She then said, "Well, what I am also saying is this: we also have to be careful in how close we get to some people, because if we get too close, it may make us do something irrational, and we could never drop the charade."

It did not take long for Ahiru to figure out what she was saying, and said, "You're talking about me and Fakir, aren't you?"

Rue hung her head, and said, "Honey, I'm sorry, but I fear you are going to hurt yourself. I mean, it's not like you to will be parted…"

"…but it would not be the same, would it?" said Ahiru, trying to finish Rue's statement.

"It only makes sense," said Rue, "considering the nature of your wish. Yes, you never mentioned being a girl, but, it must have been on your heart. You feel that you can give him more like this, don't you."

"Well…yes," said Ahiru, with tears now beginning to well up in her eyes.

"But, hasn't he said that he would love you no matter what?" asked Rue.

"That's not the point," protested Ahiru through the now growing tears, "I can't give him what he gives to me, and I so desperately want to."

"I'm sure you can in your true self, right?" asked Rue, "Have you ever thought about it?"

Ahiru began to cry, now realizing that, no matter what happens, she really did not have a choice. It was a hard slap, but it was the tough love she needed to get her to remember that this was not who she was, and that this was not permanent. Rue held her close as they walked, saying, "Now, now, no tears: be the big, brave duck that I've always known!"

Yet, Rue knew that someone was going to get hurt, no matter how it came out, and she wondered if Drosselmyer would get his tragedy after all. "Curse you, Drosselmyer!" she said under her breath.

Meanwhile, Siegfried was trying to talk to Fakir. However, the prince figured that he could be more straightforward, and decided to be more direct. He said to Fakir, "Wow, it sure looks like you and Tutu are getting close."

"I have not felt like this in a long time," said Fakir, "She, even as a duck, has taught me how to love. I despised her at one time, but now, she softened my hard heart. I owe her so much."

"That's good to hear, Fakir," said Siegfried, "because it makes what I am going to say a bit easier."

Fakir looked at him out of the corner of his eye, and said, "What do you mean?"

"I guess what I am saying…" he paused, and then said, "…is that you cannot get that close to her in the way I saw tonight. I mean, you two are already close, but this is going in a bad direction."

Fakir got the gist of it, and he could not get too mad at Siegfried, because he knew he was right. "I know what you are saying," he said, "because, when she goes back to her true self, it cannot be how it is right now."

"That's right," said Siegfried, "and I don't want to see you hurt."

Fakir walked silent, realizing that he was right. He was lying to himself, thinking how he was lying to himself. Yet, he remembered what he vowed: he would keep her like that somehow. He just did not know how without writing a story and that was a line he was not willing to cross. You alter one person in real time like that, and it would be like a highly addictive drug. Once you start you cannot stop. He could not do that to her, or himself. Yet, there had to be some way. He then remembered something, "Yet, remember what your mother said?"

"What are you referring to?" asked the prince.

"She said that she was always the believer in the third option," said Fakir, "Perhaps she may know a way."

"I never considered that," said Siegfried, "She is very wise."

"Then we have to believe for the third option: there has to be a way," said Fakir.

"It's good to have hope, my friend," said Siegfried, "but we also have to remember to be ready to accept those things that we cannot change. If there is a way, then don't give up hope. Yet, if it cannot be, remember that this is also another option, and you have to be ready for that."

"I'll face that when it comes," said Fakir.

"Then, be careful how far you take this," said Siegfried, "because there is more than just her at stake here. A good knight like you knows how to face the hard choices well, and knows when he has to stand down."

He put his hand on Fakir's back, and said, "Be real, but never give up hope."

The next morning, Ahiru awoke from a fitful sleep. On the one hand, she knew that Rue was right. This would not last, and she was allowing herself to hope against hope that, maybe, this could last. Yet, in the end, she was only a duck. She thought, "I have to be brave. I knew this was only temporary. It doesn't matter; I am me, no matter what."

She was trying to pick up her own spirits, continuing in her thoughts, "I'll be the best duck there ever was. That's how I was hatched, that's how I came up. I should just be thankful that I was given one more chance to be Tutu and help people. But…"

Her thoughts trailed off, and now she wondered if she were just lying to herself to try to feel better. She then thought, "But, wouldn't it be better this way. I know I can do great things, even as a duck. But can't I do more this way?"

She got up and got ready for breakfast. She had to eat and then tend to her studies. Maybe that would cheer her up, or at least, get her mind off things. She put on the outfit she had on the night before and went out.

As she exited, it so happened that she ran right in to Fakir. Suddenly, the feelings came back again. They met in between the dorms, staring at each other. "Look, we have to talk…" said Fakir at the same time as Ahiru was saying the same thing. They laughed a bit, and then returned to a serious face. Ahiru said, "Go first."

"I'm just going to be plain," he said, "You know I'm not one for beating around the bush. It has been great since you have been what I see before me right now."

"Yes, it has been," said Ahiru, but Fakir continued, "But, you know that we have to be careful, right?"

Her face sank, knowing what he was implying. "Look, Ahiru…Duck," making sure to emphasize the 'duck,' "We do not know how long this will last. It could all be over tomorrow, it could take years. But we do know that it will end. All will go back to normal. It is so easy to be seduced into believing this story is real life, but we know its not. Joe is not a cockatoo, you are NOT a girl. We have to be careful, or both of us are going to get hurt."

Ahiru was now at a loss from words, trying to form sentences, but not being able to speak straight enough to say anything. Finally, she just came out and said, "Are…are you saying you don't love me?"

The last part of her sentence came out more like a squeal, as she crouched to the ground, her face buried in her hands. Fakir did not like what he was doing, but he knew he had to for both of their goods. He came over and crouched before her pulling her in and hugging her. "Nothing could ever stop that now!" said Fakir, "but we must accept things sometimes. I would love it if you could stay this way, but I have to be ready if that does not happen, and so do you."

"But I can't love you like this as a duck, I can't talk to you like this, be near to you, close to you, I can't do what I do now as a duck," she bawled, "One day, you are going to want more, and I cannot give it. You'll have to find someone else, and then…and then…"

Now she was wailing. This hurt too much for words. (Meanwhile, Drosselmyer was watching with great delight thinking to himself, "I could not have written this better! Thank you, you two, thank you!") Fakir said, "Look, I just remembered, remember how Adelheid said that there was always the other option? Maybe she could come up with a way?"

That seemed to calm Ahiru down, and she said, "Do…do you think so?"

"It never hurts to ask her," said Fakir, "Pull out the diamond shard, and let's see what happens."

Ahiru went for the pocket, felt, and then tears went to shock in an instant, as her face went pale. "What's wrong?" asked Fakir with a sense of growing horror.

"I can't find it!" said Ahiru, "It's gone!"

Now Fakir stiffened, and said, "What do you mean, 'It's gone?'"

Without an answer, she rushed back to her room, and began to scour the place. Fifteen minutes later, she emerged, with Rue, Freya, and Uzzura in tow, and they all said, "We have to retrace our steps."

Siegfried, who had now come to join them, said, "We must find it, or we could be trapped forever in a world of chaos. With that, they began to retrace their steps all the way back to the pizzeria.

When the previous scene started, another person was awaking from a fitful sleep. All night long, Adelheid was planting thoughts in Julius' head. "Little boy," she said, "Little boy, that was wrong, what you did."

He shifted and turned, as the voice continued, "You must give it back to that nice girl. She never did anything to hurt you."

This continued throughout the night, and the boy's dreams were disturbed the whole way through. Maybe Irving was right. Maybe he should seek to get rid of it quickly. He arose, but the guilt was now eating at him. He got ready, and yet found it hard to eat his breakfast. He put his clothes on, grabbed the diamond, and headed out the door, trying to consider where to put the thing. He thought about just putting it back for her, or anyone for that matter, to find. However, he saw the gang scouring the fresco, and asking the crew what they may have found or seen. Instantly, he knew he could not go there, lest they accuse him of something. Thus, he headed the other way, thinking about an old abandoned well not too far outside town where he could throw the thing, and forget it all happened. However, on his way out, Adelheid said, "You could just give it back, and no one would be the wiser."

It was at this point that he realized that the diamond was speaking to him! He pulled it out, and said, "No, no one trusts me. I'll go to jail for sure!" and he began to run, and ran right into Irving and Edward. Irving saw what he was holding, and said, "I told you to get rid of that!"

"I don't to," he said, "You do it!"

At this, he threw it at Irving, but he jumped away as if someone had thrown a burning coal at him. Edward thought it funny, and he scooped it up and said, "What's the matter? You scared of it, or something?"

He then tried to reach out to him to touch him with it, but he began to run. Julius thought this a great game and ran ahead of Irving, saying, "Here! Throw it to me!"

He lobed it and Julius caught it, now chasing Irving. This is how things went on, and loud enough to catch Joe's attention. He flew overhead, and saw what they were throwing. He then swiftly flew back and said, "I found it! Follow me!"

They all stood up and followed Joe, and then were trying to keep up with the boys in their strange game of tag. They indeed had made it to the abandoned well by this point, and the game continued. Finally, Siegfried said, "Boys, you must stop this!"

All three froze, and then saw who spoke. "Oh great guns!" said Edward, "It's the prince's! Let's get out of here!"

However, Julius panicked, and tripped right over the edge of the well. Edward screamed, "No!" and went to the edge to look. Julius grabbed a log stretched out over the mouth, but lost the grip on the diamond as ht struggled to hold on. This is what Ahiru saw as she had run up herself. She screamed in horror as she watched the gem fall out of sight. Edward was begging the others to help his friend, but Irving tried to clear out. This is when he ran right smack into Fakir, who caught him with one arm, and held him like a football. "And just where do you think you're going, mister?"

"Put me down!" he screamed and kicked, "Get your filthy paws off of me!"

Fakir finally put him down, but restrained him. Meanwhile, Ahiru was at a loss. She could not become Tutu, and worse, it may well have been that the diamond shard was lost forever. "Now what?" she thought. However, Edward was screaming and begging, and now it was worse, because the log that Julius hung on was beginning to give on his weight. There was no time to think. Before anyone could act, Ahiru was up over the edge, trying to balance on the logs, and get low enough to give him her hand. "Please hurry!" he begged, and Ahiru was not sure what she could do. She wasn't Tutu at that point, and she only had what she had. However, she began to find that all the dancing and point class had greatly enhanced her balance, and she began to lower herself. Her urgency for the boy overrode her fear, and her thoughts that she could do nothing. As she neared, the creaking in the log increased. Everyone, (save for Fakir, who was restraining the third boy,) ran up as they heard the log break, tumble into the well, and the scream of the two in the hole. Everyone feared the worst, when two small hands suddenly clutched the edge. They quickly pulled him up, as they saw Ahiru climbing up behind him. "I was able to grab him and swing him up before the log broke," she said, as they pulled her out. Yet, they all looked down the well, knowing the loss. However, before anyone could react, they heard a voice say, "Worry not, my friends, all is well."

Out of the well came Adelheid, with the diamond in her hand. "You see, I am not trapped in this, and there was no way that I would have allowed the diamond's loss."

She handed her the diamond shard, and said, "That was a brave thing you did, Tutu."

"I'm not Tutu," said Ahiru, "It's just the role I have right now."

"That is where you are wrong, child," she said, "Even though you had the power granted you for a time, it left a signature on you. In truth, the spirit of Tutu has always been there since the first story, but now, it is a part of you. It will never leave. That was the spirit that caused you to act, even as what you are right now."

"I have a question…" said Ahiru, but Adelheid cut her off and said, "That can be dealt with later. In the meantime, look at the boy."

She put the gem to her eye, and saw Rolf all over Irving. Adelheid reentered the diamond shard, and then said, "Go somewhere, and change: you may be able to do it without transforming, but I think these three boys need something greater sparked in their minds."

Ahiru ducked behind some trees when no one was watching, and transformed. The scene then went to what it normally did when the transformation took place, and out stepped Princess Tutu. "Irving," she said, "You are under a bad spell, and I wish to free you."

She reached for the amulet, but Rolf was more the wiser, and said, through the boy, and in his voice, "It will take more than that! He then stomped hard on Fakir's foot, who then let out a yell as he let go, and the boy took off. "Everyone, spread out and catch him!" said the prince, and they all scattered as he headed into town. Everywhere he went, it seemed like someone was ready to cut him off. He finally ducked behind a dumpster, and he thought he was safe. Suddenly, Uzzura began to beat her drum as she yelled, "I found him-zura!"

The boy nearly climbed out of his skin as he ran again. Since Julius and Edward knew that he had more problems than being a thief, they also joined in the chase. Finally, he ran out of room as he was cornered on the city wall. He was now surrounded, and Tutu approached, smiling and saying, "I would say, that was a fun game of hide and seek, but now it is time to stop running."

He tried to bolt again, but his two friends grabbed him. Tutu then reached out and touched him with the amulet, and the arc of red light headed straight for the park, and into the diamond. Once that was done, Tutu said, "Dance with me!"

He protested, "I don't do that sissy dance!"

"But the prince does it, and he is not a sissy, is he?" reasoned Tutu as she giggled.

"I guess not," he said.

"And look at his faithful knight, Fakir," she then said, "You know he is not a sissy, and he dances like that."

"He does?" he now said in wonderment.

"Oh yes," she said, "It helps him do all sorts of other things."

She then giggled again, and said, "Dance with me! Just dance freely!"

He was reluctant at first, but then he took her hand, and they began to dance. He surprised himself, and Tutu said, "Wow, you are a natural!"

"You really think so?" he said, and not sure why.

"Of course!" she said, "You have such a natural line and agility. I bet you could be a real great dancer!"

"No I can't," he said, "No one likes me. No one likes orphans."

"Oh, you poor thing," she said, "That's not true. Did you know that Fakir here was an orphan? Look at how he turned out."

"Really?" he said, in wonderment.

"Just because you are an orphan," she said, "does not mean that you cannot be what you want. You have your whole life ahead of you. I bet, if you started lessons now, you could go the academy, and be something someday—you and your friends."

"But…but who would take me now?" he said, as their dance ended.

"I would," said Siegfried, as he closed up a phone, "I have asked that the three of you become wards of the state. You three will live in the palace, get an education, and learn the dance. No one will ever come after you again, and one day, I promise you, you will be in the academy, and be famous. You can give hope to other boys. Do not ever let outward appearances make you think that you cannot be something great."

Tutu was already departing the scene, but she then began to ponder those words. She would have to talk to Fakir later.

At lunch, quite exhausted and hungry, the gang sat to eat. However, they took a second or two to back away far enough for Fakir and Ahiru to talk with Adelheid. "I heard what the prince said, and I remember what I said as Tutu," she said, "and I am ready to accept whatever my fate may be."

"What brought this on?" said Fakir.

"I do want this love to blossom," said Ahiru, "but we have to be what we are, and today I proved to myself that I can be great no matter what I am. If it could be that we could be together like this, it would be great. Adelheid, is there anything you can do?"

"This must be a great trial for you two," said Adelheid, "but it is true, we always have to expect the worst, but hope for the best."

"But, you've always talked about the other, or third, option," said Fakir, "Is there one here?"

There was a moment of silence, and then she said, "Let me ponder that for a while. I would say that there are always other options. We have to gauge what the others want as well, and we have to see what decisions present themselves at that time. We always have to have the ability to adapt, just like you did today, Duck. Let us just say, as long as there is even a slim chance, neither of you should give up hope."

They sat silent for about a minute, and Fakir finally said, "Look, let's do this," he said, taking her hands, very tenderly, "Let our friendship grow first. Let us not get all that friendly physically until we know that there would be nothing to prevent that. That way, all that will happen is that we will be even closer friends, and even if you must go back to being a duck, there will be nothing that we have shared that is so intimate that we will be tortured for the rest of our lives. How is that?"

Ahiru thought for a moment, and then said, "It sounds like a good idea," and they shook hands like they were making a business deal, and then laughed at themselves as they did this. "I feel like we just signed a business contract or something," said Ahiru.

"That's fine," said Fakir.

"In the meantime," added Ahiru, "I will think of ways that I can reciprocate all that you do for me, even if a duck is all I ever be. Rue gave me that idea."

"Reciprocate," said Fakir, "Is that what it's all about?"

"Partly," said Ahiru.

"Duck," said Fakir, "I would never ask you to go that far for me. You gave me a life, and that is all I could have ever asked for in you. All that I do is the least of what you deserve. Even if you stay a duck, even if I were to marry another, I would always want you around, and I would always take care of you. You know that."

Ahiru began to tear up, but with tears of joy, knowing that, if she had to let him wed another, if it meant his happiness, it was fine, knowing that you still would have a place in his life. "Then I'll be ready," she said, "Just be there with me when the time comes."

"Now, that's more like the Tutu I have come to know," said Adelheid, "But never give up hope for better."

They hugged, but stopped, and patted each others back, as the laughed, going forehead to forehead. "I love you, web-footed wonder!"

Ahiru smiled, but put a mock angry look on her face as she gave him a playful shove. Everyone then linked arm and arm as they left. Uzzura loved the sight, and said, "This must be friendship lovey-dovey-zura!" and played her drum as they marched out.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter X

_Music: La_ _Traviata__—the Champagne_ _Song/On the Beautiful Blue Danube_

A few weeks had passed since warlock number three had been captured, and now there was great worry between Heinrich and Felix. Each time they tried to be cleverer, it always blew up in their faces. At this point, they really could not blame Drosselmyer, because he wasn't causing them to fail. They had to pick their targets more carefully, and be more subtle when they acted. They were at a loss for whom to find, and they hoped that a target would soon present itself. However, Felix was not going to be the first to volunteer, but Heinrich really was not very anxious himself. They finally odd manned, and the lot fell on Heinrich. At the same time, Felix was setting some kind of a plan that would involve Drosselmyer if he were left alone. He would try to use his influence to gain a spectacular victim, and try to finish off this Tutu himself. In the meantime, Heinrich began to search. Then, one evening, he found his chance. He observed a girl in her late teens calling home. It was a call filled with distress, and he could see her face was not all that bright. Listening in, he caught this, "But mother," she said, "please don't pull me out of school. There has to be a way!"

"Kelsey," she said, "I know this is important to you, but we just don't have the money anymore. I'm sorry, baby, but you have to come home."

"Please, mother," she begged, "There has to be another way!"

"Baby, if there were, you know that I would do it," her mother said, "You can finish out the semester, and then you have to come home."

"Yes, momma," she conceded, very quietly.

"Bye-bye baby," she said, "I love you."

"I love you too," Kelsey said in return, and she hung up.

"Ah!" said Heinrich, "depression: I can work with this!"

He knew that she did not have to harm anyone to have anyone die—he could get her to do in herself! He could also slip in, and remain unnoticed, because she would only be depressed. Considering the circumstances, her peers would see this as a normal reaction to things. He could then spiral her out of control, slowly but surely, torturing her in the process and no one would be the wiser to his actions. He just had to wait for the right moment.

In the meantime, Fakir and Ahiru were trying to act more like buddies than like boyfriend/girlfriend, trying to ensure that nothing too great built between them, so that, when this was all over, there would be no broken hearts. However, they were not always successful, and had to stop moments of intimacy short, and quickly. It was harder this way than it was just being close, because they had to stifle what they truly felt in their hearts for their own good. Yet, the other four and Uzzura watched their charade, wondering if they could make it happen, or if they were only lying to themselves. In class, they tried to avoid working together on pas de deux, but they were not able. Thus, they had to try to convince themselves that they were just being professional, and that there was nothing going on. However, they had a hard time convincing other people. The two that took the greatest note were Freya and Joe. They both had an idea what was going on, because they saw how they had been, saw what they were trying to be now, and to them, it looked as fake and contrived as anything they had ever seen. They knew what lie at the end, and they felt so sad for the two of them. "Joe," said Freya, "it pains me just to watch this."

"They are trying to be brave, and it just isn't working," said Joe.

"I wish they did not have to do this," she said.

"I know why they are doing this," said Joe, "They are doing this for me, because they know it has to go back to what it was before. They don't want to leave me like this."

"I don't want you to stay like this," she said, "but I could not stand it if they had to spend the rest of their lives being separate, and yet together, knowing what they had, and then not being able to have it."

"I think we could understand how it would feel, though," said Joe, "What if they refused to fix this, and left me like this? What would we do?"

"It would be a little better," she said, "I mean, we can still talk, and be together, and share ideas."

"But we could not share each other," he said, "and it's not like I could not make a sacrifice if need be. Yet, I can't help but believe that, no matter what happens, someone is going to be very hurt."

Joe then sat silent on the balance bar as she continued to practice, and he began to ponder what he should do when the time comes.

One thing everyone noticed was Kelsey. She was not her normal, outgoing self. Frau Von Trapp finally came up to her and asked her what was on her mind. When she disclosed it, she broke into tears. Frau Von Trapp was all sympathetic to her case, but there was not much that she could do. She did tell her that she would be greatly missed, and that she should cherish the time she had, learning as much as she could. Everyone was a little saddened by this, but it was something that happened. You just had to go on. Later on, in the changing room, both Rue and Ahiru sat down beside her and tried to console her. Even Lillie joined in, but with a different attitude than what she had ever had before. "You know, it will sting for a time," said Rue, "that you won't be with all your friends, having to get used to a new school. Yet, it's not like you have to stop studying ballet."

"Yeah," said Ahiru, "I even practiced when I could when I could not be here. It sure paid off."

"Who knows," said Lillie, "If it changed for the bad right now, maybe it can turn around, and you can come back one day."

"Do you think so?" asked Kelsey, "I sure hope so. You can't get out there what you get here."

It seemed she cheered up, and the others were surprised at how Lillie was dealing with it. She actually was an encouragement. "Hey, enjoy it as much as you can," said Rue, "and, you have until mid-December: anything can happen between then and now."

"Yeah," said Ahiru, "you should never give up hope."

However, Ahiru was a bit rattled by her own words. She knew that her hope for the future was slimmer than this girl's future, and yet she continued to smile despite it all. She was not sure if she had peace in her heart about things to come, but she knew that Tutu would have kept her chin up, and for Kelsey's sake, she would do the same. Kelsey did feel better some, but there was still an air of sadness about her. Everyone hoped that they could encourage her, and they all decided to do all they could to be with her, and help her smile, to put her mind of her troubles. As they all broke up, Rue said, "I am so proud of you, Duck, (making sure to always use that name, so she could always remind her to remind herself of what she truly was,) you could have been talking about yourself there."

"Maybe I was," she said, "and I still don't like the idea. However, I have to keep reminding myself of what I am. It is hard to see that when I look in the mirror right now, so I have to. Yet, I just have to keep smiling. It's all I can do. I guess that's my saving grace: no matter what happens, I have to smile."

Rue smiled and laughed, saying, "You are one weird duck! I guess that's why we love you!"

Kelsey, however, was not doing so well. She was cheered up for a bit, but now, alone with her thoughts; the depression began to hit her again. She eventually pulled out a photo album that held all her pictures that she had collected of school since her middle school years. She saw all the shows, the trips to the lake, goofing around with her friends, the honors she received at the end of the year for a job well done. The more she looked, the more the tears began to flow. Soon, she was crying her eyes out. She just did not want to leave. There was really nothing for her to go back to, save her parents. She just did not know where she would get what she needed to succeed as a ballerina. "My life is over," she began to mutter, "All my dreams are going away."

In this state of mind, her heart was becoming open to suggestion, and this is when Heinrich moved in. "You poor thing, whatever will you do?"

"I don't know," she cried, not even wondering who was speaking to her, "I just don't know."

"I want to help you," the voice said, "Let me in, and all will be solved."

She did not say it, but her yielding state of mind said all that was needed. Heinrich slipped in at that moment. However, instead of becoming active in her thoughts, he decided to lay dormant, only arising when it seemed fit. He was going to be far more subtle than his colleagues had been, and thus, he did not intend to be caught. All he had to do was get the girl into a deep depression, and then cause her to do in herself. It would be sweet.

Siegfried later got word that there was going to be a royal ball to entertain a head of state soon, and so he had to be ready. Of course, all his friends would be invited, and he had space for a couple more. Thus, he kept his eyes open for that person. While this was happening, Kelsey seemed to be getting worse. She had no life, and her grades were beginning to slip. Frau Von Trapp had to keep getting her back on track, yet, at the same time; she knew that to get mad at her would be useless. She knew that, if it had been her, she would have been just as depressed. One thing that scared Rue when she heard it was the times when she began to disparage for her life. She kept commenting on wanting to curl up in bed, and then not wanting to get up. When she heard this, Rue told Freya and the Terrible Trio to keep a close eye on her. Uzzura could not help see that Kelsey was sad, and even tried to cheer her up in her own way. It seemed that Uzzura could get her to smile, so they decided to let Uzzura stay with her for a time. It served two purposes: to keep her mind of things, and to have an honest set of eyes watching her. Because of her childlike innocence, they knew that if there were something terribly wrong, Uzzura would be very plain. Rue then suggested to Siegfried that they make Kelsey the extra invite, if only to help her feel better, and to keep a better eye on her. Rue went as far as to invite her to stay in the palace for the weekend of the ball, just as a thrill. It did brighten her a bit, but there still seemed to be this cloud of doom hanging over her. Then it got worse.

The girls began to find Kelsey in very risky situations. They found her walking on the wall along the moat, sitting on the roof of the dorm on a dangerous ledge, she was beginning to let her hygiene go a bit, and she was only doing the bare minimums to make it. What no one realized was that she had Heinrich in her, constantly feeding her doom and gloom, filling her head with lies. He had to pat himself on the back, and laugh inwardly. He was being so clever. No one would ever suspect what was wrong. However, there was a set of eyes watching, and she now spoke to Ahiru. "I think you need to take a look at Kelsey," said Adelheid.

"Why?" asked Ahiru, "she doesn't show signs of one of the five around her."

"That's true," said Adelheid, "It does look like normal depression. However, that is precisely the kind of person that they would seek."

"Well, we all go to the palace tonight," said Ahiru, "The ball is tomorrow, and I think it might help."

"Still, you have the diamond shard," said Adelheid, "If you see her start to do some really desperate things, look through the stone. Then you will know for sure."

"Why don't I look right now?" asked Ahiru.

"If he is there," answered Adelheid, "we want him to think that he is still undetected, or unsuspected. We want to catch him at the right moment, because if we don't he may cause her to run, to be more quiet, or act faster than we can solve the situation. At the very least, he will attempt to be more elusive, and we don't need him to turtle up any more than what he may be now. We just don't want to tip him off."

Later on at the palace, Pique and Lillie were both agog about being in the palace. This was the first time either had stayed in something so fancy, and they were going to try to enjoy every minute of it. However, Kelsey did not seem to want to cheer up all that much. Sure, the nice things at the palace did take her mind off things, but it still did not remove the proverbial cloud. When it came time for bed, she just slumped in, and acted as if she never wanted to wake up. Ahiru watched her enter her room, and when she rolled onto her side, she thought that this might be a good time to look at her. She put her hand on her pocket, and then stopped. She thought, "Sure, her back maybe turned, but what if the warlock can still see?"

She then decided to look if it appeared to be a situation where he was too distracted for him to notice someone looking at her.

The next day, everyone was in for a surprise. Kelsey was the first up, and the first to breakfast. She seemed very content, and she was actually smiling. Rue said, "Well, well, well—look at who's all bright eyed and bushy tailed this morning!"

"Yeah," said Kelsey, "I did some thinking last night."

"Sure looks like you did," said Ahiru, "something click in there?"

Kelsey looked out for a moment, and then brought her gaze back to everyone and said, "You could say that!"

Everyone gave an internal sigh of relief, figuring that something good may have happened, and all would be well…except for one. Joe looked at her, and thought that she was feeling a little **too** good. Not only that, but it seemed odd for her to flip-flop in just one night. Once Freya was away from the table, and tending to the royal flower garden, (old habits die hard,) Joe said, "I know things seem okay," said Joe, "but something still does not seem right."

"What do you mean, baby?" she asked, a bit confused.

"Well, I think I have seen something like this before," he answered, "I think it kind of means that she has made a decision about something."

"How is this bad?" she asked.

"Well, remember," said Joe, "when one makes a decision, one is choosing an option amongst several, or from at least two."

Freya stiffened a bit, realizing what the implications might be, asking, "Are you saying that it might not be a good decision?"

"From what I understand," he answered, "a decision means an inner peace of some kind. Whatever way she chose about things, she has come to terms about it. If it is for something bad, there would be no way of knowing."

"Then what must we do?" she asked, now very worried.

"Always have someone with her," he said, "Never let her out of your sight!"

When they were done, she relayed the news to everyone else, and they formed a rotating schedule, so it did not seem that they did not trust her, but that they just wanted to spend time with her.

As the day progressed, they were able to insure that she was never alone. However, as the time for the ball drew near, she did seem to become more and more frustrated, especially when they came in at places where it seemed that she was about to do something risky again. That behavior in itself tipped them off that she had not made the right decision. They were more determined now than ever to make sure she was not alone. Eventually, everyone had to get ready for the ball, and it was in the confusion of getting ready that caused everyone to lose track of who was supposed to be on watch. Heinrich was waiting for this moment. He whispered to her, "Now, take the bed sheets and start to tie them end to end."

Robotically, she began to do just that. He then said, "Now, tie one end to the pillar, and the other around your neck."

Again, she did as she was told, and he began to get giddy, saying "Yes! Yes, that's it! Soon your pain and worries will be all over."

"Yes," she said blankly, "All over."

Ahiru was standing outside, waiting for the ball to begin, getting some fresh air. It was then that she looked up, and saw Kelsey, in a beautiful flowing gown step into the windowsill, and she appeared to have a white satin scarf around her neck. However, it quickly dawned on Ahiru that it was not a satin scarf, and realized what was about to happen. She pulled out the diamond shard, and saw a warlock all over her. She had to act fast. She put the stone to her head and made the change.

Kelsey stood for a moment, getting up a bit more courage. She then said, "Good-bye, mother, I hope you can understand why I did this."

She closed her eyes, took one step, and did not drop. In fact, she seemed to be standing on something quite solid. She opened her eyes to see a very concerned Princess Tutu staring back at her, as the both stood on a flowery vine stock. "Please, dear Kelsey, this is not the answer," said Tutu, as a couple of vines came forth and removed the makeshift noose from her neck. The stalk set them in the room, and Tutu said, "Here, let me help to clear your mind."

She started to reach for the amulet, but a male voice told her, "Not this time! You will not find me that easy!"

With that, she tore out into the hallway, not wanting Tutu to catch up. This surprised the girls, not just because of her running out, but also because of Tutu being in hot pursuit. She tried to go one way, but a vine cage wall blocked her way. "Please don't run, I want to help you," said Tutu, but Kelsey tore right by. She then came to the edge of the grand staircase overlooking the ballroom, and Heinrich said, 'Now! Do it now—head first!"

She started to dive, but Tutu leapt out and caught her before she really had fallen any distance. A large astral swan that seemed to ease them to the floor silhouetted Tutu. Everyone was stunned, as the surroundings took on the normal look that indicated Tutu was present. Some wanted to complain about the disturbance, but they could not find the words to say for the sight. As they descended, Tutu now had her where she could not run. Heinrich said through her, "NO! I was so clever! How could you have caught me?"

Tutu paid it no mind as she reached out with the amulet and touched her heart. Heinrich screamed, and arced out of the palace. As they hit the floor, Tutu spun away in a pirouette, and finished in an arabesque as she held Kelsey's hand. She then let go, took the fifth position, gestured, and extended her hand. The orchestra director, familiar with ballet mime, knew what that meant, and called for the players to start the Champagne Song. As they began the dance, they began to speak, "Thank you, Princess Tutu," said Kelsey, "I don't know what came over me."

"It's alright," she said, "What was tormenting you shall never do so again."

"I cannot believe what I tried to do," pondered Kelsey.

"Then you would agree that what is happening to you is nothing over which to kill yourself," said Tutu.

"That is true," said Kelsey, "Still, I wish I could change things."

As the music progressed, everyone was beginning to feel festive, and Rue, Freya, and the other two of the trio could not resist the urge to join the dance. Eventually, Fakir and Siegfried joined in, and they were now doing pas de deux, group work, solos, and generally putting on a show as Kelsey and Tutu spoke. Everyone backed off far enough for the kids to dance. The orchestra then began to play _On the Beautiful Blue Danube,_ not wanting to disturb the sight. Tutu then continued, "Decisions like what your mother had to make are always hard. Believe me, I have one myself that I must make soon, and it will not be easy. However, know that your mother was indeed looking out for your better interests. I'm sure that, if there were another way, she would allow you to go. However, always remember that, even though the door shuts here, a window opens somewhere else. Just keep passing the open windows, knowing the one that you go out of will not be like the one you tried to exit tonight!"

At this, all the kids were dancing their hearts out, having quite a time, and putting on a great show. The visiting head of state knew of both Rue and Siegfried's dancing background, but he did not expect a show from the academy that night. When they were done, that head of state said, "You children were fantastic. That academy must really be top notch!"

"It certainly is," said the prince, "and I have a grant slated for that school to help needy students with talent that needs to be fostered. However, there is only so much in the budget, and we cannot help everyone."

"Is that so?" he said, and then said, "Well, it looks like something needs to be done about that.

He then stepped forward for everyone to hear, and said, "When I get back, I am going to talk to my legislature, and we are going to get an appropriation for that school. It is written right into our laws that we should fund useful arts and sciences, and this indeed would not be a waste of the people's money."

The prince then looked over at Kelsey and winked. Kelsey was ecstatic. She could go to school now, and she would not have to burden her mother any more. She could not wait to tell her! As this joy was spilling out, Tutu took this moment to slip out and change back into Ahiru. When she returned, the ball began to progress as normal, but Rue wanted a word with Ahiru. "Duck, could you come here, please?" asked Rue, who was standing by the concessions.

"What is it?" she quizzed.

"What you said as Tutu tonight was great," said Rue.

"It seems strange," said Ahiru, "Even though I and Tutu are the same person, it always seems I can think clearer."

"That is interesting, but," said Rue trailing off, and then continuing, "Well…you do remember what you said about decisions, right?"

Ahiru sighed, and her face sank, but just a touch. She then said, "Yes, but, you know, I think that I can take comfort in my own words tonight."

"How so," said Rue.

"Even if I must be a duck again," said Ahiru, "I cannot forget what kept me going even then."

"What was that?"

"The last heart shard that I gave to Siegfried was 'hope.' Even though I was a duck—I am a duck—I never gave up hope that things might change. In that, I had contentment as a duck. As you can see, it happened, even if it were but for a short time. If it happened now, it could happen again, I just cannot give up hope. Yet, thanks to you, you have taught me to love myself, because what is truly me is in here, (pointing to her heart,) not what you see. I will never give up hope as long as there is air in my lungs, and a wind beneath my wings. It's still going to hurt, but I am going to be okay. I didn't give up hope that night, and, in a way, I helped kill the Raven that night. I am sure you saw Tutu emerge from me in an astral form when you came out, right?"

"I remember that."

"Then I am all three—a duck, Duck, and Tutu—nothing will ever stop that!"

Rue smiled and hugged her, saying, "Now that's the duck I know!"

They then looked at the ball, and Rue asked, "What now?"

"I'm going to ask my good friend Fakir to dance," said Ahiru, "not caring about what is to come, and…" she then trailed off, and then got a coquettish look on her face, saying, "…and then I'm going to dance with my prince, and declare my love for him!"

Of course, Rue knew she was kidding, and said, "You do, and becoming a speck of light would be better for you than what I would do!"

They both laughed hard, and they made their way out to the dance floor. Rue put her arm around Ahiru, saying, "Keep smiling,—that's your saving grace!"

She got to Fakir, and they began to dance. As they did, Fakir said, "Isn't this a bit too intimate?"

"It doesn't matter," said Ahiru, "I'm going to enjoy these days as much as I can. Even if I must go back, I will never give up hope, because if it happened now, it can happen again. I know you will be there with me, no matter what. That's enough for me."

They stared at each other for a moment, and then they kissed passionately. Freya looked, worried that things were not going to go well, but Rue said to her, "Don't worry,—I think that it will not matter in the long run. I think they have both accepted things, and yet, they both have set their love on trust and hope. That overcomes anything. It's good this way. It's better than pretending. They'll be okay, because they are two of the strongest people I know."


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter XI

_Music: Night on Bald Mountain_

Now both Felix and Drosselmyer were beside themselves. Felix was watching his friends disappearing faster than flowers being plucked by a little girl for a daisy chain. Drosselmyer was watching his tragedy fall apart once again, and there seemed to be no way of stopping it. Felix was quite reluctant to do anything now, and to a little extent, held Drosselmyer responsible for the losses. He got into Drosselmyer's face and said, "Okay, now what do I do!"

"I am not certain anything can be done," he said, "I have never had a story where the characters wrote it themselves. I have always been in control, except for once."

"Oh?" said Felix, "and when was that?"

"Not even last year," said Drosselmyer, "It was when my meddlesome distant grandson decided to try to overpower my story. Instead, he wrote a story about Tutu that he interwove into the action, and it messed everything up. If I could only get at this story, it would be different."

"How are you going to do that?" asked Felix, "They have it sealed and vaulted away."

They thought for a moment, and then Felix asked, "Who has access to that vault?"

"Only the royalty has access, and one butler," said Drosselmyer, "Yet, I cannot see…"

He stopped, and then said, "…the royalty!"

"What are you scheming, Drosselmyer?" asked Felix, "After all that has happened, I do not think I trust you a whole lot!"

"I just remembered something," said Drosselmyer, with a dreamy look in his eye.

"What does it have to do with the story?" demanded Felix.

"If you want to challenge a hero," said Drosselmyer, "You need a villain that is equal to the hero in just about every respect, and I think we have one."

He then pointed to a cog that displayed the face of Rue as she went about her daily business. "There is your answer."

"The princess consort?" asked Felix, "She's friends with everyone else. How can she help?"

"Ah, but you see, dear Felix," said Drosselmyer, rubbing his hands together, "in the last story, she was a villain for a time, until the ultimate villain reared his head. She did indeed see the error of her ways. However, because of the nature of the story, she has raven's blood still in her veins."

"What are you saying?" asked Felix, his eyes narrowing, thinking that he was catching on.

"All that needs to be done is for you to enter into her, stir up that blood, and make her the villain once more," said Drosselmyer.

"Right!" snuffed Felix, "and just how do I do that?"

"You must pick a time that she is open to suggestion," said Drosselmyer, "then you can do what you wish."

"What about Tutu?" he then asked, "How do I stop her?"

"Rue, that is to say, Princess Kraehe, will know," answered Drosselmyer, "She would never let Tutu get near her with that amulet."

Felix thought for a moment, and then said, "Wait, I can go while she is asleep. She would be wide open to suggestion then."

"Very good!" exclaimed Drosselmyer, "Then you can have her extract the manuscript, force Fakir to bring it up to date, and then bring the whole thing to a tragic conclusion, maybe even release your friends!"

"Maybe, we can even get rid of Adelheid," pondered Felix.

"A very distinct possibility," said Drosselmyer, "Let us lay the trap, the same night as the ball!"

They then lay in wait for the first chance to strike.

The ball was a success, Kelsey was free, and Fakir and Ahiru were freely expressing their love for one another, even though they knew that it could not last. They were willing to not give up hope that one day, even if she had to be a duck again, that it could change. They accepted what could happen, because Ahiru had finally come to realize that, it is not the outer appearance that makes a person what one is, but what lay in the heart. She knew that Fakir would love her—love _her_—not what she looked like. Nothing could stop that now. That night, everyone got ready for bed, and Rue was feeling as light as a feather. Her friends were finally finding peace, there was only one more warlock left to defeat, and she would marry her prince. Once this was done, they could finally put the past behind them, and move on. She finally was able to be drowsy enough to sleep. Felix had been waiting for this chance. Once she was in a deep sleep, he began to deal with her. "You are the Raven's daughter," he whispered.

"No, I never was," protested Rue in her sleep.

"Tutu and Siegfried killed your father," he said further.

"I am a human," said Rue, "I am not a crow."

"Tutu wants to steal your prince," he said, "She always has."

"No, she has what she wants," Rue protested.

"Come now," he said, "Why take a chance?"

"What do you want," she said.

"Let me in," he said, "and I will insure that you will never lose the prince."

"I don't want to lose him," she said, now turning in her sleep. That was the inroad for which he probed, and he moved in for the kill.

"I can insure you keep the prince forever, I can help," said Felix, now casting his spell on her.

"I want the prince," she said, "Help me keep the prince."

"Good girl," he said, and he entered in.

However, when Rue awoke the next morning, she felt conflicted. She did not know why, but the prince, and keeping him was all she had on her mind. Even though Felix had gotten in, place was not entirely found for him. He had to share it with Siegfried. However, he felt that he had enough of a toehold on her to get her to do what he wanted. "Get the manuscript," she heard in her head, but she did not know why. He now figured that this was going to take some drastic measures. He tapped into her adrenal glands, and started to stir up some memories where Tutu was vying for the heart of Siegfried. He kept trying to tap into her anger at the attempt to steal him, and trying to stir up her raven's blood. "You will do as I say," he finally said, and she fought him, growling out, "No, I won't! Leave Duck alone!"

"You must stop her," he said, "and then get the manuscript. Be the only princess. Don't take a chance."

She fought, but vainly, as her raven's blood stirred, and the bad memories seemed to become more real as the moments passed. "You cannot win, girl," he said, "If you resist, I shall cause you torment."

With that, he caused her to remember the sick feeling of deception she felt when she found out her true origins, and realized just how much she had lost. However, somehow, he was shaping it in such a fashion that, if Tutu had not come along, all would have been fine. Tutu caused her the painful memories and realizations. "NO!" she screamed, and fell behind the bed. At that, the room began to fill with swirling feathers.

Ahiru was now dreaming, and she was dreaming of Fakir. In her dream, she was a duck, and she was in his arms as he danced. She felt safe and strong, even though she was like this. He set her down, and they began to dance side by side. In fact, they were doing what would be considered the grand pas de deux. Yes, all would be well. All she had to do was keep hope, keep dancing, and keep smiling. However, out of nowhere, she saw a horrifying sight, as she heard, "And now you will pay for what you did!"

When she looked over, she was shocked to see Kraehe, holding a dagger, getting ready to thrust it into the heart of Fakir. "NO!" she screamed, but knowing she could do nothing as a duck. She then saw on the beach the diamond shard, and went for it. What she did not realize was that Kraehe had actually entered the room, and she had unconsciously started to reach for the gem. Ahiru was in a semi-wakened state at this point, and just before she grabbed it, she came fully awake, and she stopped. It was not because she did not want to grab it, but because she was attempting to look around the room to see what was going on. She was shocked to indeed see Kraehe standing there, and before she could act, a black vine arose and restrained her hand, "Ah, ah, ah—very naughty, Duck!"

"Rue!" screamed Ahiru, "What are you doing? How did this happen?"

"There is no Rue!" she thundered as she crossed the room, and slapped Ahiru in the face—_hard_! She screamed in pain, and began to cry uncontrollably. "Why, Rue, why are you doing this?" she sobbed.

"No one is going to take the prince from me. He is mine!"

"But Rue," said Ahiru, "I'm not trying…" but that was all she was able to say, as Kraehe raised the back of her hand, and Ahiru cowered back. Kraehe said, "It is princess Kraehe, and if you had just stayed out of things, none of what we know would have happened! Now you are going to pay dearly for this!"

With that, she bound Ahiru's hand, and dragged her out of the room. Ahiru knew that she was not in her right mind—she could not be! However, Freya began to hear the struggling outside, and came to investigate. She looked in horror at the sight! "Who are you?" she demanded, to which Kraehe replied, "Your worst nightmare!"

In an instant, she was entangled, and then bound as well. Vines entwined Ahiru as well, and the roots came out of the ground and began to walk. Kraehe then said, "In the lower parts of the palace, there are some interesting rooms. I think I am going to give you a first-hand look at just how interesting!"

At this point, they were in the torture chambers and the dungeons of the old palace from many centuries before. She had Freya and Ahiru tied to some interesting racks. At the end of each rope sat a large barrel, which sat over a hole. Kraehe then said, "When I pull this lever, water will trickle down from a stream above us. I am going to set it very slow, because I want to make sure you gain the full benefits of the 'treatment.' The water will eventually fill the barrels, and, in a matter of hours, you will be pulled apart!"

"Why are you doing this," asked Freya, "What did we ever do to you?"

"You denied my father a heart," she said, "And you could not mind your own business!"

"Please, Rue," said Ahiru, "I know the real Rue is in there somewhere. You have to fight this. The Raven was not your father. We are your friends! I helped save your life!"

Kraehe stopped, staggered, and began to shout, "Get out of my head!" but to no avail. The torment came again, and again, she yielded. Kraehe got back that evil look in her eyes, and said, "Don't bother screaming, ladies, because, where you are, no one will hear you. I suggest you conserve your energy, because, the less you expend, the longer you last. However, you have to ask yourself what is worse: being pulled apart, or dying of thirst. You shall have plenty of time to ponder that. Ta-Ta, ladies!"

As she left, Ahiru then began to shout, "You are an imposter! Even Kraehe would not have been this cruel!"

"What is going on," asked Freya.

"It has to be the last warlock," said Ahiru, "Somehow, he got in, but I don't think that this is what she wanted. Our only hope now is the boys. They have to stop her."

However, Ahiru wondered just what could be done. Both ladies then lay there, watching the water, wondering just how long they did have.

At this point, Fakir was just coming to, getting ready for the day, as was the prince. However, Kraehe had already been there, and she entangled the door with her black vines to the point where the prince could not get out. The prince tried, but he was not successful. He was beginning to ponder how to get out of this, when he heard voices outside. Fakir was stepping out of his room, and ran right into Kraehe. She had the manuscript for _Adelheid and the Five Warlocks_ in her hand. "What!" he exclaimed, "How…why…what are you doing!"

"Tending to a waste of a knight that does not even know how to die correctly," she said snidely, and immediately ensnared him as he had the girls. At that, she took him to one of the highest towers in the palace, and set him at a table with all he would need to write. "Now, you are going to write, and fill in all the events from the diamond shard on to now. When you get to now, you shall be told what to write."

The vines set him in the chair, but restrained his left hand. There was a reason for this. Fakir then said, "I would love to know just what you think you are going to do to get me to write."

"Oh, I have my ways," she said, and with that, she exclaimed, "Oh, Drosselmyer, darling!"

Everything in the room stilled. The coffin shaped grandfather clock appeared, and out stepped Drosselmyer. "Don't worry, boy," said Drosselmyer, "Time shall not stop while I am here for long. I want to conserve myself. I want to be sure that I am here long enough for you to finish this epic! You just have not learned, have you? Mess with my manuscripts while in one of my stories, and you leave yourself open to my power."

With that said, Fakir's free hand suddenly rose up and grabbed the quill. He then began to write, and write frantically. Fakir did all he could to free his other hand to stop himself, but there was nothing he could do. "It's no use to resist, son," he said, "You are my blood, and in my story. You just had to activate it, didn't you? You gave me a way in. Even if you were to win, I will insure that this will always be the result. Because of your blood, when I am here, I will always be able to use you."

He began to laugh uncontrollably, and he watched with great satisfaction. It was then that Kraehe suddenly realized that the others may be berthing at that point, and they may try to find the girls. If they were able to free the prince, they may try to free the girls, and then it would all be over. She looked at Drosselmyer, and said, "I am going to ensure that no one disturbs you. You need time, and I shall buy some."

"Curse you, you crow!" said Fakir, "I don't know what you did with Rue, but I am going to make you pay dearly if I can get out of this!"

However, he knew it was a vain statement to make as she left, and he sat there, continuing to write. What would they do now?


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter XII

_Music: 1812 Overture_

By this time, Pique, Lillie, Kelsey, Joe, and Uzzura were around the table, wondering where everyone was. They were an hour late, and no one wanted to offend the royal couple by eating before them, and then leave. However, Joe, as a bird, knew that on one would say anything if he got up and left, and he told the girls, "Look, I'm going to see what's going on. Hang tight!"

Joe took to the air, and flew to Rue's room. He was shocked to find black feathers everywhere. Something was terribly wrong. He then went to Ahiru's room. She was gone, and he noticed the diamond shard on the end table. This was really odd! She would have never left it on the table like that. He now flapped as hard as he could, tucking in, trying to be as fast and aerodynamic as he could. When he got to the prince's door, it was covered with black vines. "Your highness!" he shouted, "Are you in there?"

"Is that Joe," he answered, all muffled.

"Yes, its Joe!" he shouted, "Are you okay?"

"What happened?" the prince demanded.

"Your door is covered in black vines," said Joe, "Rue, Freya, and Duck are nowhere to be seen!"

"Get the servants!" he shouted, "and someone get an axe. There is trouble afoot!"

Joe did as he was bidden. He got the girls, told them the problem, and immediately palace security was chopping their way into the room. In the meantime, Joe got Uzzura to fetch the shard. He said, "Hold onto it, and don't let it go until you can give it to Duck. Hopefully, if nothing bad has happened, we can give it to her, and we can stop all this madness."

By the time they came back, the prince was free, and calling for the royal sword. He then told everyone, "Okay, girls, start to search the third floor up to the towers. The rest of you, scour the first and second floors, and the grounds. Joe, Uzzura, come with me."

The first place they went was to Rue's room. When he saw the feathers, he was out of his mind. Somehow, someone or something caused her to become Kraehe again. He wondered if it was the one remaining warlock, and if so, how did he do this? He then took Joe and Uzzura down the hall. "Where are we going-zura," asked Uzzura, thinking that this was some delightful game. "We are trying to find Duck and Freya," said Siegfried.

"Oh!" she said, "Hide and seek-zura!"

Siegfried went with it, and said, "Yes, and they may be down here. I need you to help me find them."

"Okay-zura!" she exclaimed, but then said, "But all I see is a wall-zura!"

"Watch!" he said, and pulled on a torch holder. The wall opened up, and Uzzura said, "Ooh, a secret passage-zura—they know how to hide-zura!"

The three quickly made their way down.

Meanwhile, Kraehe was trying to evade detection. She was going to insure that nothing disturbed the process, but now she was going to have to try something else. She had wanted to force someone else to fetch the diamond shard, and then insure that it ended up at the bottom of the river, lake, or wherever she could dispose of it. Felix knew that she could not touch it, lest he join his friends. While all this was going on, Freya and Ahiru were just beginning to feel a bit of pressure as the barrels had gained enough water for the weight to be felt. They could not cry, they could not yell, all they could do was lay there and wait. Fakir was writing feverishly, and his arm was beginning to hurt. However, Drosselmyer was not going to have any mercy on him. He was going to get things finished, and then restore the tragedy that he had worked so hard to achieve. By this time, Kraehe came to the secret passage, and found it open. Now she knew she had to act fast. She slipped down without being noticed and made her way to the torture chamber. The girls heard the door open, and thought it was help, but Kraehe said, "So, how goes the stretching exercises?"

"You just couldn't resist coming to watch, could you?" spit out Freya.

Kraehe ignored this statement, and walked over to the two barrels that were attached to the arms of Ahiru. She saw the water, and she knew she had to be feeling it by now. "So, how's it going, Duck?" she said smilingly, and pushed on the barrels. Ahiru screamed in pain loud enough to make ears bleed. Kraehe stopped the swinging so that the water could continue to fill it. Ahiru was now bawling, and Kraehe came over to look her in the face. She stroked her hair, and said, almost in a loving fashion, "It's all for the best, you know. You know that, if you were going to be a duck again, you would never have a hope of being this way again. Its better you die than to be tortured for the rest of your life."

"Shut up!" she demanded, "You are not Kraehe! You're not even Rue! Neither was ever this cruel! The Kraehe that I know would have at least given us a fighting chance!"

"You deserve no chances!" thundered a male voice from Kraehe, "You will pay for what you did to my friends!"

Now she knew that Kraehe was not acting in her right mind. Yet, what would they do now? Kraehe went back to the lever, and decided to expedite things. She set it in such a fashion that, in a couple of hours, all would be over. With that, she left, and decided to find some "volunteer" to retrieve the diamond shard, and be rid of it forever.

Upstairs, Kraehe made her way to Ahiru's room, and tried to find the shard, but it was gone. Now she began to worry. She went to the prince's room, and found that he had been freed. Trouble loomed on the horizon. She only hoped that progress was being made. However, at this point, palace security spotted her, and said, "You, stop right where you are!"

"It won't be that easy, darling!" she snapped, as a rain of feathers flew at him. As he tried to dodge the storm, she did a jette past him, and headed to the dungeon once more. Her prince must have been going there, for only Rue, Siegfried, and a select few others knew about any of this. Upstairs, Pique and Lillie were making their way up to one of the towers, and they heard the sinister laughter. At this, Lillie reached out to turn the handle, and was thrown back by a hard electrical shock. She landed on Pique, and they both lay there, as Lillie said in a daze, "I don't want to go to school today, Mommy!"

Meanwhile, Joe and Uzzura were searching diligently when they stumbled across the torture room. Joe heard the moans of pain, and he knew that they were not some leftovers from days gone by. "Uzzura, come over here, would you?" he said, and she obeyed.

"Did talky-birdie find something?" she asked.

"Yes," he said, "What do you hear?"

She put her ear to the door, and said, "Someone's crying-zura!"

"That's what I thought!" said Joe, and he said to her, "Open the door! We don't have a moment to lose!"

"Will I win the game-zura?" she asked, thinking they were still playing hide-and-seek.

Joe sighed, remembering that he was dealing with a childlike mind that may not quite understand the grave danger that they girls may be in, and he said, "Yes, you will be declared the big winner of the day! Now, open the door, please?"

However, Uzzura was so happy that she would be called the winner, that she just had to beat her drum, march around, and sing her, "I'm so happy, I won-zura!" song. Joe was now out of his head, as the moaning was beginning to get worse. What he did not know was that the drum was telling the girls that help lay just outside the door, and they started screaming for help. When Uzzura stopped for a moment, she heard the cries for help, and said, "Who needs help-zura?"

"Duck and Freya need help!" he said, all frustrated.

"Oh," she said, "I thought we were playing hide-and-seek-zura?"

"Argh!" Joe said, finally losing his patience, "JUST OPEN THE STUPID DOOR!"

Uzzura did not know what to think, and began to cry, thinking that she had done something bad. "Uzzura was naughty-zura!"

"Mamma Mia!" Joe exclaimed, and realized that, if he did not patronize her, the girls were as good as dead. "Look, I'm sorry I yelled at you, okay?" he said, in a quiet, soft voice.

"No, your not," cried Uzzura, "You're mad at Uzzura-zura."

He sighed, and said, playing the game, and stroking her head, "Look…sometimes grown-ups do stupid things, and sometimes we get so emotional we don't think like we should."

"You don't-zura?" she asked, drying away a few tears, now seeing that someone was being sympathetic and nice to her.

"That's right," he said.

"So, even grown-ups can be naughty sometimes-zura?"

"Yep, that's right too. I got mad, because, right now, behind that door, someone is doing some very naughty things to Freya and Duck, and I wanted to stop it, but I cannot open the door like this. So, I got mad, and yelled. I'm sorry, can you ever forgive me?"

At that, he put forth the pouting eyes, hoping to calm her down, and then get her to open the door if it was not too late by this point. However, when she heard that a naughty person was hurting her friends her childlike logic finally kicked in, she forgot the game, her sadness, and said, "They leave ducky-lucky alone-zura!"

She charged the door, snapped the handle down, and flung the door open. Joe was horrified by what he saw. It did not take him long to figure out what was happening, and he flew over to Freya, trying to bite open the knot. However, she said, "Forget that, there is a lever on the wall. Stop the water before it rips us apart. It hurts so bad, baby."

However, Joe was not sure about that, considering the rigmarole that he had to go though just to get Uzzura to open the door. He took a chance, going with the "naughty people" thing, and said, "Uzzura, the naughty people are hurting them with that lever on the wall. Shut off the water."

Uzzura went over, examined it for a minute, and said, "Is it this one-zura?"

Joe sighed, and said, "Now you see what took so long."

He then said, "That's very good, Uzzura, you found it the first time."

Now she was so happy, that she started to play her drum and sing, "I found it-zura, and I found it the first time-zura!"

Joe felt his lifeblood seeping through his talons at that moment, and said, "Ahem, Uzzura…remember the naughty people?"

"Oops, sorry-zura," she said, and cranked on the handle—the wrong way! Now it was flowing freely, and both girls arched their backs as they screamed in pain! Uzzura was now panicking, not sure what to do. Joe screamed, "The other way, Uzzura—TURN IT THE OTHER WAY!"

Uzzura regained herself, and tried to push it but it would not relent, as she screamed, "Its stuck-zura!"

At that precise moment, Siegfried entered, hearing the screams, and as quick as a wink, cut all the ropes holding the barrels. The girls now lay in pain on the beds, unable to move, crying their eyes out. "It hurts! It hurts!" was all they could cry. At that moment, Kraehe came in and saw what happened. Siegfried turned about to see her standing there, and said, "Rue, what happened?"

"My prince," she said, "Why did you do that? All I was trying to do was insure none would split us up."

Siegfried pointed his sword at her, and said, "What have you done with Rue?"

"Darling," she said, "What's wrong? I stand right here—you're beloved Kraehe."

"You should have been gone!" said Siegfried, cursing the raven's blood still in her. Knowing the charade was up, Felix finally uttered through everything, "You will not spoil this, and you shall all pay!"

"And this is where you malevolence ends!" said a gentle but firm voice.

Everyone looked over and saw Tutu standing ready. Uzzura saw Ahiru crying and hurting, and thought that, if she gave her the pretty rock, it might make her feel better. "Here's your pretty rock," she said, "I hope it make's you happy-zura."

Ahiru smiled and said, "You have no idea!"

Now Tutu stood ready to put this tale to an end. First, she went over and eased Freya's pain, saying, "Rest now, dear friend: when you awaken, you will no longer be in pain, and all will be healed."

She then turned her attention to Kraehe, and said, "Now, you will release my friend."

Kraehe stepped back, and Felix said, "You shall never catch me!"

Tutu fixed a set of angry eyes on her and said, "That was not a request!"

However, she/he was so affixed on Tutu, that neither saw the prince slip behind and put her in an arm bar. "I'm sorry, my love, but it is for your own good."

"No!" Felix cried as he cursed, knowing what might be coming. Tutu began to make her way over, but vines shot up everywhere. However, after having combated her before, she was countering it with her own, and dancing around the obstacles. "There has been too much pain and suffering, because of you and your friends. Now, it ceases."

She took off the amulet, and began to reach for Kraehe. She was cursing and struggling under the influence of Felix, but the prince then put a restraining hold around her other arm, and wrapped a leg around her legs. "And now, we not only extract your trouble, but the Raven's blood as well."

With that, she touched Kraehe, and the red light went straight up and headed for the diamond in the rough. Along with it came out the raven's blood, and her freedom entered with it. She had not changed back, but still appeared as Kraehe. Yet, the peace returned to her, and all was well. "Rue," asked Tutu, "Are you there?"

Rue finally came to, and saw Tutu standing there. She said, "Thank you, and please forgive me…"

"There is nothing to forgive, dearest Rue," she said, "I know that you did not do this."

She then noticed how she was dressed, and said, "I never thought I would look like this again!"

She smiled, and spun around, looking at her beau, saying, "You know, I might get used to this," bobbing her eyebrows up and down. He just gave her that look, as they went and helped Freya to her feet. She was all right enough, but it would be something that she would not soon forget. Then Rue remembered, "I forgot! Fakir—he's trapped up in the east tower with Drosselmyer! He's trying to get Fakir to finish the story! We have to hurry before all this changes!"

With that, the all rushed to the east tower.

Inside, Fakir was near unconsciousness, is arm exhausted and in pain. However, Drosselmyer was writing through him. He knew that Fakir was only three-quarters of the way along, and did all he could to hurry things along. Outside, Lillie was recovering as they saw the prince coming up the stairs with Tutu and Rue. Of course, they were amazed by how Rue was dressed, but figured that that was not the best time to say anything about it. Rue went for the door, but they quickly warned her away. Tutu thought for a moment, and then spun her hand about, and a vine from the outside came in and grabbed the handle. It sizzled a bit, but she had it open it up slowly and discreetly. Meanwhile, Drosselmyer was reveling over things. He thought that the tragedy would go on and on. His grandson would either keep writing, allowing him in to meddle, or just stop, and allow him to go on. No matter what, it was a win-win situation. Drosselmyer said, "Silly boy: when are you going to realize that happy endings are expected and boring? Everyone expects those kinds of things. Tragedy is much more fun! You really see people as they are, and it can teach so much. You must admit, tragedy is how real life works! I mean, look at your situation. No matter what, you think that you and Duck will be together forever. Yet, you know that the only way that would happen is if you write a story for her, and that was a line you said that you would never cross! Silly boy, why would you torture both you and her like that? No matter, it makes the tragedy that much sweeter! Once you learn that happy endings are a farce, life will be so much better for you!"

"Endings are only sad if we choose them to be," said the prince as he entered the room.

"WHAT!" he said, "How did you get out?"

"We write our own stories," said Rue, "No one controls our destinies."

"You think so?" he said, "When will you realize that you cannot win? I hold all the cards."

With that, he started to head for the clock, saying, "There will be another day."

However, Siegfried intercepted him, and with one mighty swing of his sword, smashed the clock.

"Wrong!" he thundered, "Your last chapter is here and now."

Drosselmyer screamed in anger and agony. He wheeled around to run right into Tutu who was holding out the amulet, as she said, "Your time in the story of life has ended, and it is time to turn the page forever."

She touched his chest, and he screamed, "No! This cannot be! The author is supposed to write the tragedy, not be the tragedy!"

He began to sparkle, and then turn into a red beam of light that arched its way to the diamond in the rough, and everyone wondered what his distress was for, considering that he got exactly what he desired—a tragic conclusion. He never figured that it would be for him!

However, one more chapter had to be written.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter XIII

_Music: Con Te Partiro, (Time to Say Good-Bye)/ Just Show Me How to Love You_

After the long and tiring events of that day, Fakir needed some time to recover, as did Freya. At this, Adelheid emerged, and said, "We must now end this story, and put things right."

The prince then said, "Mother, could we at least give these two one more day together? I think they have earned it."

Fakir and Ahiru moved in close to one another, giving that look that pleaded for a yes. Adelheid said, "Giovanni Caruso, what would you like?"

"I waited this long, I think I could go one more day. It's no problem," he said, smiling as best a bird can smile.

The couple squeezed each other, and smiled. "Then it is decided. Tomorrow night, we end this," said Siegfried.

"Meet us at the lake," said Fakir, "What do we do then?"

"Take the diamond shard and put it into the divot that it came from," she said, "Then a wish shall be made that would put things right, and this would seal off the diamond from escape forever."

"Then we chuck the thing into the lake, into the deepest part," said Fakir, "and Drosselmyer shall never come back again to haunt us."

Uzzura started to think, and began to realize what the grown-ups were talking about, started to tear up, and then she wrapped her arms around Ahiru's leg, saying, "Don't go away again-zura!"

She bent down and hugged her, and said, "Honey, it's for the best. I am a bird, and Joe is a boy. That's the way it's supposed to be. It's not fair to him."

"I like the red-haired girl-zura," Uzzura protested.

"But I'm not going away," said Ahiru, "I'll just look…well…different."

"You mean Duck is still duck-zura?" said Uzzura.

"The real me is in here," said Ahiru, pointing to her heart.

"Is the real me in here?" asked Uzzura, pointing to her own.

"It sure is little one!" she said.

It was then that Uzzura heard a familiar voice, and said, "Don't cry, Uzzura, when the time comes, just follow your heart."

She knew that voice well. That voice always helped her to understand the world a whole lot better, and showed her that she had a heart, and freewill. She then stepped back and said, "Don't worry, ducky, I'll follow my heart-zura!"

"Now that's what I wanted to hear," said Ahiru, smiling.

At sunrise the next day, Fakir had her awoken so that they could spend the most time possible together. Siegfried gave him use of one of the royal limousine, and so they were off. They went to breakfast au fresco, and started sharing special stories. They reminisced of times before the original story, she shared of funny things that happened to her as a duck before they met, remembered funny stories from school, after the first story, during that school year, and got closer to each other with every passing minute. They went to the state museum together, toured the old country and Fakir asked her, for the first time, what her childhood had been like, and what she remembered. She said that she would tell him of that when they got to the lake near the smith shop. She said for him to save some time for that. They took lunch, and had a quiet carriage ride around that city. As they made their way along, they came across a renaissance fair. They stopped in, and Fakir bought them two outfits befitting that fair. They really began to get into the role-play, and Fakir even showed his stuff. There was a place where a person could fence an expert in the weapons of that time, and Fakir jumped at the chance. He was suited up, and proved a match for the man there. He fought with a skill and expertise befitting a knight, and won. Once that was done, music struck up, and some of the dancers there started to perform some period dances. Of course, Fakir and Ahiru could not resist the urge to dance, and put together quite the pas de deux, as if they knew that this just might be the last chance they would ever be able to do this. Soon, it was late, and they had to go. They stopped off to get something to eat, and headed to the lake, still in the costumes that Fakir had bought. They then headed to the lake, but Ahiru walked him to a spot to the other side of the lake. "You asked me earlier about where I was born," she said, and took him to a hidden grove that was well sheltered. She pointed and said, "I was hatched and brooded right here. This is where I spent time as a chick, playing in the water, and mother taught me all I needed to know as a duck. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine my life heading this direction."

They started to walk around to the dock where they would be meeting the others, and Fakir said, "You know, deep down inside, I have been preparing myself for this, and yet, there is still that pang. Yet, you seem so cool about it, talking about your time as a bird as casually as you talk about being a girl, or Tutu. How do you do it?"

She thought for a moment, and said, "You know, love, I am so glad we had this day. Before, I had to go back so abruptly, and I had no chance to tell you how I felt. I have it now. During this time as a girl, I have learned so much about myself, and I have learned to love myself so much more than before, now that I realize that the real me lies deep inside. The outward is really vanity, because we don't fall in love with outer looks. It helps, but it is this, (pointing to his heart,) and this, (pointing to his head,) with which we really fall in love."

"You sound just like Tutu," he said.

"And why not, love," she said, "she is as much me as the duck, and what you see. Yet, no matter what, all three are just the shell that contains who I am. Drosselmyer thought that he was just letting me borrow Tutu, but in reality, I _became_ Tutu—I _am_ Princess Tutu, and that will never change. It's not the duck you love, it's I, and that will never change either. I know that it will not. Yet, the best thing of all about this is the way that I see things now. I once thought that, if I could not be a girl, I could never truly return my love to you in the way you had shown it to me. I was so silly. I now realize that I have all along and I never realized it. Now I know that I can, because love is something more than the superficial. Even as a duck, as much as you are there for me, I will there for you, doing all that I can for you, because, even as a duck, I am strong. There is nothing that I cannot do if I try. It's going to be okay."

"Should we then continue to hope?" he asked.

"Never give up hope," she said, "but no matter what happens to me, let's just cherish the time we have together, and know that none can ever take that away from us."

By this point, they were standing on the dock where they knew that they would be spending the majority of their time, watching the sunset, saying nothing further, and they just held each other.

Just as the last rays of orange were in the sky, the prince, Rue, Freya, and Joe arrived. Siegfried had gone to the park to dig up the diamond in the rough, and they prepared to end the story. Princess Adelheid emerged once again from the diamond shard as Ahiru produced it, and Ahiru set it in the divot. Uzzura asked Rue what was going on, and she said, "She is going to make a wish to make things right, and everything will go back to normal. The story will end, and we can all get on with our lives."

Uzzura watched with amazement and wonder, and asked, "You make a wish, and it fixes everything-zura?"

"That's right," said Freya.

She walked over with Joe on her hand, and they prepared. Ahiru walked over to Fakir and said, "Well, this is it baby. I'll be a duck, and we can get on with things."

However, no matter how strong the two of them had been, tears were still starting to well up. They embraced, realizing that this would be a bit harder than they had thought. "Good-bye," she said, "and Hello, I guess," as she kissed him one more time passionately. All the girls were in tears now, because they knew that this just had to be tearing the two of them apart. The couple parted, Ahiru took a big sigh, spun around, and said, "Fakir, if you find this hard to watch, you do not have to."

"I must," he said, "Its only right."

She did not look at him, but went to the diamond in the rough. With tears streaming down her face, she reached out and prepared to touch the shard and make the wish. As all the farewells were taking place, however, Joe saw the bravery and sadness, and he looked at himself. He looked at Freya, and thought of how things would be. He looked at Freya and said, "Baby, this is killing me!"

Somehow, she already sensed where Joe was going, and she said, "Joey, you aren't considering…"

"Baby," he said, "Everyone is making assumptions here. Everyone thinks that I want to be a boy again, and, well, yes, that's true…but not if it costs them this!"

"Honey," she said, looking at him in horror, "what about us?"

"It won't be as bad for us as it would be for them," he said, "Because, we can still talk, be together, and such. Didn't she say that the real person is in here? Besides, if they can have hope that it could be different, why can't we. I am willing to make this sacrifice if you are."

She wanted to protest further, but she then realized just how selfish she would be if she did. Furthermore, if she let that get in-between her and him, how shallow would she be? She then just nodded, and Joe said, "Stop!"

They all looked at him, and said, "I cannot let you do this. You two need to be like this. I could not live with myself if I let you do this."

"But Joe," said Ahiru, "I thought…"

"I know what I said," he said, "But I've kinda gotten used to this. You were such a good teacher in showing me how to be a bird, is easy now. I can take it. Life can be good this way."

At this, he flew to her hand and extended his wing, preparing to make the wish himself. Adelheid looked at him, but not crossly. It was more as if she were pleased with what she was seeing, and she said, "Is that what you truly want?"

"You said a wish to put things right needed to be made, right?" he asked.

"That is correct," she answered.

"Believe me," he said, "this would be making things right," and he prepared to make the wish.

While all that was going on, Uzzura was confused. No one had wished yet, and she wondered what the problem was. She asked Rue, "What's going on-zura?"

"They are discussing how this should be done," answered Rue.

"I don't understand-zura," she said.

"Duck wants to make the wish," said Rue, "but Joe says he is willing to be a bird, because he thinks that's how things would be put right."

"They have to wish to make things right-zura?" she asked.

"That's it, little one," said Rue.

"Either can make the wish?" she asked.

"It looks like it," answered Rue.

Uzzura thought for a moment, and she then heard that voice again—the voice of Edel—and _she_ said, "Follow your heart. What do you think would make things right?"

Uzzura thought for a moment, and figured that, if they could wish, so could she. While they were discussing, Uzzura jumped up on the dock pillar next to the diamond and slipped her hand underneath Joe's wing, as she screamed, "I just want everyone to be happy and not to cry anymore-zura!" and slapped the diamond shard. Everyone was shocked as they saw this. There was a split second where everyone wanted to stop her, but it was too late. The diamond began to glow, and then the glow began to fill the area, and then to cover the entirety of Goldkronesburg. When the glowing had stopped, the diamond was all in one piece again, at least to the eye. When it stopped, all were amazed at the sight. Joe was again himself, and he began to jump around happy, saying, "I'm back! I'm me again! I'm free…I'm naked!"

He then tried to cover up in vain, as everyone laughed, and Fakir gave him his cloak. The next amazing sight was Ahiru. She was still a girl, except now she had a pretty red pendant around her neck. Next, they all saw Princess Adelheid, but now she looked like a six-foot tall astral swan. Finally, (and this was the most amazing sight,) there stood Uzzura, still wearing the same clothes, but instead of a doll, she was a real, live girl! "I'm all pink-zura!"

No one knew what to say, and then Siegfried finally said, "Mother, what happened?"

"Worry not, my son," she said, "for there is no justice like the justice conjured in the mind of a small child. The diamond must have seen this, and knew that her point of view was the best way to put things right."

"Yet, look at you!" he said, a bit distressed. She waived it off, and said, "My darling son, worry not. At this stage of existence, outer looks matter little. The diamond knew this, took the essence of the bird that Duck had given to Joe, and put it onto me, knowing that it would do no harm. Truly, this is the best way that all of you now can write your own stories. Oh, and by the way, Duck, the diamond determined something else for you. Look at your neck."

She knew that pendant, and she said, "I don't understand any of this. I was willing to go back, and I was ready."

"The reason why you stayed a girl is simple. Your noble heart had much to do with things. By your time as a girl in this story, you learned how not to be selfish and vain. You learned that true beauty lies within and that this is one of the greatest sources of love that there is. It makes you love all people regardless of who they are. Because you were ready to face the world this way, even if you were willing to accept the bare minimums of what you deserved, there is a certain law under which you fall—the law of sowing and reaping. The seeds you have sown all this time were so good that only being allowed a part of the harvest would not be right. Because your were noble enough to accept the minimum of what you deserved, you are now being rewarded with greater than that with which you were willing to settle. This has always been the great lesson of many fairy tales, which is something Drosselmyer forgot, and something that you now are experiencing. Because of that noble heart, the diamond also determined something else. Inside that pendant is a small sliver of itself, not enough ever to allow those six inside it to escape, but just enough, containing my essence, to allow you to be Princess Tutu whenever the need exists. There is no need for the greatest heroine in the history of the principality to cease existing. As for you, Fakir, remember what you have learned about stories, and the mischief of Drosselmyer you seek to correct. Remember always reward the most noble and giving hearts with that which they deserve, not the minimums they settle for, for this is one of the greatest laws of the universe. Now, I think it is time to take care of that diamond and end the story."

As Ahiru's head was swimming with joy, he took the diamond in the rough out of her hands, and said, "No more shall you torment another soul. Here is the reaping of the seeds you six have sown."

With that, he flung it as hard as he could into what he knew was the deepest part of the lake. No one but they would know it was there, and before long, the algae would cover it to the point where it would never be found again. Adelheid began to glow, and said, "Now it is time for me to go to greater things, children. My son, wear the crown well and always remember to love all, and rule well and justly. Love Rue deeply, and raise your children to be as you, and greater. Fare thee well, children, fare thee well…" and she faded away.

Ahiru and Fakir nearly tackled each other as they embraced and kissed, and that inspired the other two couples to do the same. Uzzura was beating her drum, screaming; "Now that's lovey-dovey-zura!"

Epilogue

_Music: The Wedding Song, (There is Love)_

Inside the diamond, all they knew was the cramped area inside which they were trapped. They could not get free, and worse, they were trapped and forgotten at the bottom of a deep lake. The five warlocks were enraged that they had this fate, and it was worse now. Now, they had no hope for freedom, and they realized that, if it had not been for the meddling of Drosselmyer, they would have been better off. Drosselmyer was as captive as they were, and they were now screaming for his blood. They used all their powers to torment them as much as they could, for this was the only satisfaction that they would ever had. Drosselmyer tried to avoid them as much as he could, but he never could be free, for, to where could he run? Drosselmyer now had all eternity to ponder just what it was that he loved so much in tragedy.

Because of the wish, no one in school even remembered the duck, and Ahiru's royal status was made official by the prince, in that, if anything ever happened to he and Rue before they were to have offspring, she and Fakir could fill the hole—the only two people to whom he could entrust the throne. Before long, Ahiru was on point, and in the advanced class—something she had at one time figured would never happen. Uzzura came under the care of Rue and Siegfried, as if she was their own daughter, and she became a ward of the state. She was even endowed with a royal title—Lady Uzzura—and they would enroll her in the academy for drums and percussion when she was old enough. Then it became time for the wedding. Of course, Fakir and Ahiru were best man and maid of honor, and Joe's band played the reception. Indeed, some of the music set some of the nobility off, but what could they say. The prince liked them, and that was that! However, the first couple enjoyed their first dance as Joe sang "She's Always a Woman to Me," and then he gave the toast. What was more touching, (and what won over the nobility at the wedding,) was how he capped off the toast. He sang a song which was written by Noel Paul Stookie, (of Peter, Paul, and Mary,) for his good friend Peter Yyovonne and his wedding called "The Wedding Song," or "There is Love," which Peter immediately put in public domain. His reasoning was that the song was a gift, and he did not want to make profit from it. Joe picked up a 12-string acoustic, and sang about the joining of two hearts, and God being in the midst of that. He sang how life is drawn from the man by the woman, and then returned in kind. He asked the question why people join in marriage, and if it was love that was responsible, or was it love that gave life. He then asked, if love is the reason, then who was the giving for, and if people had the ability to believe something they had never seen. In all of that, there is love. Not only did Siegfried and Rue enjoy it, but Fakir and Ahiru now felt closer than they ever had before, which explained the interesting thing that everyone but Rue and Siegfried saw at the wedding ceremony. As the couple was taking their vows, Fakir and Ahiru stood close and held hands behind the couple. People wondered if they were going to be the next two to join in the life vow.

However, the one thing that really caught the attention of the principality was the rumored sightings of a strange princess ballerina that saves lives and who dances to guide the hearts of all she helps. Some say that it was Princess Tutu, and others questioned that, wondering how a storybook character could have come to life. However, the sightings were frequent enough, and the stories persistent enough, that all the young people in the realm knew that, if you truly needed help and guidance, all you had to do is wish real hard, seek inside yourself, and she would be there and dance to guide your heart.


End file.
